


The Successful Acrobat's Guide to High School

by Myoneloveismusic



Category: DCU, Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Cheerleader!Dick, Highschool AU, M/M, Mutual Pining, NO CAPES, Runner!Wally, background Conner/Megan, background jaytim, cross-dressing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2019-06-23 01:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 33,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15595542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myoneloveismusic/pseuds/Myoneloveismusic
Summary: Dick Grayson wanted nothing more than to join his high school's gymnastics team, but a lack of funding and interest from other students left him without an outlet. The principle offered him a chance to help coach the cheer team. Their tumbling needed some serious work and who was he to turn down the chance to do flips and back handsprings during his free time? But one day during practice when one of the cheerleaders was out sick, they asked Dick to fill in and he found a whole new interest of his that he hadn't been expecting. Now, he just had to figure out how to juggle his commitment to the cheer team, all of the high school drama swirling around him, and his growing interest for his best friend and the school's cross country star, Wally West. Handling all of that shouldn't be too hard, should it?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been obsessing over this au for four days now and have shared it with literally every person who is willing to listen to me. I wrote this chapter in two days and I'm so psyched to finally be posting. I hope you enjoy the beginning of the birdflash high school au because I am very much looking forward to writing this au and getting to some of the reallllyyyyyy good stuff that's coming in future chapters. 
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

“What do you mean there’s not going to be a gymnastics team this year?” Dick cried, jumping up from his seat.

The principle sighed. “I’m sorry, Dick. We don’t have the funding needed to support a gymnastics team. And even if we did, we don’t have enough interest from the students to justify having one. I know the team is close to your heart and something you’re passionate about, but we have to cut the program this year. I’m sorry, but that’s how it’s going to be. I’m sure there are plenty of teams at the local gyms you could join and compete that way.”

“But I don’t want to compete for those teams,” Dick said, checking his voice before it rose to a childish whine.

“I’m sorry, Dick. But there’s nothing else I can offer you right now. If you want to be involved with one of the school teams or clubs, now is the perfect time to broaden your interests. It just won’t be through the school’s gymnastics team.”

“I understand,” Dick said, shoulders slumping. He grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder, shuffling out of the office with another apology from the principle.

Dick squeezed the straps of his backpack, trying to think of something to do. He understood what she was saying about finding a team centered in an outside gym, but he’d done that before and it wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be. The people who he worked with hardly cared about being friends and as much as he was dedicated to his training, he didn’t want to spend 20 or more hours a week with people who barely knew his name.

He sighed and pushed through the front door of the school, spotting Alfred’s car further down the sidewalk.

“Dick!”

He looked up at his name and saw Wally running towards him among a pack of cross country runners. His grin faded as he approached and saw how upset Dick looked.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, slowing to a stop as the rest of the group went on ahead.

Dick ran a hand through his hair. “There’s not going to be a gymnastics team this year.”

“What? Why?” Wally asked, mouth hanging open in shock.

“There’s not enough funding or interest so the program is being cut. The principle told me that I can join a competitive team out of a gym if it’s that important to me.”

Wally frowned. “But a competitive gym isn’t part of our school.”

Dick sighed. “That’s what I told her, but there’s nothing we can do. If there aren’t enough students, it doesn’t matter if we have the funding or not.”

Wally opened his mouth to say something else.

“West!” a deep voice barked, catching their attention.

They both looked over to find the slim cross country coach watching them, a deep frown on his face. “You can talk to your boyfriend after practice! Let’s go! That’s three more laps for you!”

The two of them flushed and took a step away from each other.

“Sorry, I keep telling him we’re not dating, but he won’t listen to me. I’ll stop by the Manor after practice, okay?” Wally said, giving Dick one last onceover as he stepped backwards.

Dick nodded and watched him start running again. He cupped his hands around his mouth. “Later, Kid Flash!”

Wally waved a hand over his head without looking back and Dick watched him go until he’d turned the corner of the building, his yellow running shoes disappearing from sight. Dick sighed and headed towards the car, sliding into the back seat.

“Afternoon, Master Richard,” Alfred greeted as he shut the door behind him. He pulled away from the curb and made for the exit of the school parking lot.

“Good afternoon, Alfred,” Dick said.

“Is everything all right, sir?” he asked, looking in the rearview mirror.

“No, but I’d rather not talk about it,” he said, leaning his head back to close his eyes. “It’s not going to change anything even if I do.”

“Of course, sir,” Alfred said.

“Wally’s going to stop by after he finishes practice,” he added with a mumble.

“I’ll prepare some snacks for the both of you.”

“Thanks, Alfred.”

“Of course, Master Richard.”

The car was silent as they wove through the streets of Gotham towards the Manor. Dick’s head ended up against the window and he watched the buildings that slid past and the people on the sidewalks. He wasn’t paying attention to what they were doing. His brain was still halfway stuck in the principle’s office, going over the conversation they’d had. He’d had such high hopes for the school year and being able to do gymnastics.

And now he just…didn’t know what to do with himself. He needed gymnastics. It gave him a reason to move and made him feel so alive. Maybe he would go back to a gym again. Even if he didn’t compete, he could at least work with a coach and have access to the facilities he craved.

The car pulled into the garage at the Manor and Dick sluggishly climbed out. Alfred placed a hand on his shoulder as he passed, but it did nothing to improve his mood. He hurried up to his room and dropped his backpack on the floor before he fell on top of his bed. He sighed and closed his eyes.

He had a little bit of homework in his backpack, but the thought of trying to focus on that was draining. He rolled onto his side and pulled his knees up to his chest, knowing the wait for Wally to come over was going to take longer than he was ready to handle. He needed a distraction and the best distraction he could have was running laps around their school building.

Dick pulled out his phone, hoping to distract himself with social media while he waited. He scrolled through Instagram, finding several pictures from his friends on his time line. Wally, of course, had one from before practice of his obnoxious yellow sneakers because he always had to post pictures before practice. But Dick would’ve been the same with gymnastics. They loved their sports and wanted to share them with the world. Dick was almost waiting for the day when Wally declared he was going to be a professional runner. He had the skill and the speed. He just needed to focus and get a coach and he could make it happen.

Tim had an artsy picture posted of his camera that he used for yearbook and newspaper. It looked like things were getting started early for them this year. Dick briefly wondered what stories they had to work through so early in the school year. It was probably going to mainly focus on sports since the first games and meets were coming soon enough.

Jason had one of him kicking a goal at practice, his leg outstretched as the ball sailed into the net. Dick smiled. He was sure Tim was behind the camera taking the photo. He hung around to watch Jason practice a lot, sometimes he used the excuse he was there for yearbook or the newspaper, but they all knew he was just there to ogle Jason in his soccer kit. All their friends were waiting for the two of them to get together. They made a cute couple and they were both obviously into each other, but neither of them had made a move, if they’d even realized their feelings were mutual.

Dick kept scrolling. Zatanna and Megan had a picture of them together at cheer practice and Dick felt a pang in his chest at the thought of them flipping and twirling and tumbling. It wasn’t everything he wanted to do, but they got to fly through the air. He sighed and locked his phone, letting his hand fall to the bed. He closed his eyes, trying to push his disappointment to the side. He could go out to the backyard and climb on the trampoline to do flips and twists.

He rolled onto his back, splaying his limbs out across the comforter as he stared up at the ceiling. He frowned, glaring at it for a few seconds before his face softened, eyes sliding shut again.

“I’m not mad at you ceiling,” he mumbled. “Today has just been a shitty day.”

He heard something thump distantly in the house and he frowned. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to listen as the thumping came again. This time it was repetitive and growing closer. Dick pushed himself up in bed and swung his legs over the side. He walked towards the door when the thumping abruptly cut off.

He narrowed his eyes, taking another step forward, and thinking it might be Titus, but he wasn’t that poorly trained, when a tall redhead swung around the corner and crashed into him. He gasped as they hit the floor. Wally braced his hands, hovering over him as he grinned wide, green eyes sparkling.

“Wally?” Dick asked. “Aren’t you still supposed to be at practice?”

“I pushed my pace so I could get done faster. I couldn’t very well let my best friend mope about the loss of the gymnastics team without me.”

Dick grinned and pushed at his shoulder, sending him rolling off him. He sat up and looked at his friend next to him.

“You thinking what I’m thinking?” he asked, looking over at Wally.

“Ultimate Mario Kart tournament,” he answered, matching his grin.

Dick jumped to his feet and sprinted from the room for the stairs. Wally caught up quickly and they raced down the hallway for the T.V. room. Wally burst through the doors ahead of him and flopped down on the couch.

“No fair,” Dick said, jumping on top of him.

“Is too fair,” Wally said, shoving him off.

Dick caught himself before he could hit the floor. He pouted up at his friend. “No, it’s not fair. You’re supposed to let me win because you’re exhausted from practice.”

“Why would I let you win when running is _my_ sport?”

“You’re a terrible best friend.”

Wally put his hands behind his head and grinned. “If I was a terrible best friend, I wouldn’t be here to cheer you up. Now get the game ready so we can play instead of sitting around and doing nothing fun.”

“Fine,” Dick grumbled. He walked over to the T.V. and turned it on, loading the game disc into the Wii before he grabbed two controls and fell back onto the couch next to Wally. He tossed one of the controllers into Wally’s lap and started to set up the game.

“Master Richard and Master Wallace, I’ve brought some snacks for both of you,” Alfred said, stepping into the room with a tray in his hands.

“Thanks Alfred!” Dick said as he picked Mario for his character. Wally went with Princess Peach. He could already feel his excitement growing as the promise of competition grew.

“Let me know if you need anything else or if Master Wallace would like to stay for dinner this evening.”

“Sure thing, Alfred,” Dick said, already focused on picking the courses they were going to race as Wally snagged a cookie from the tray.

“You’re so going down,” Wally said around the cookie in his mouth as Dick picked one of the four-course sets. Knowing them they’d probably go through every course until they were finished. Or until Alfred kicked Wally out of the Manor.  

“In your dreams,” Dick said, grinning. He leaned forward as the screen changed and the video of the first course came up. As fast as Wally was in real life, he had the technical nuance of a little kid. Dick was going to make him eat his dust. “Want to make this more interesting?” he asked as the stoplight hovered at the top of their screens.

“Always,” Wally said, leaning forward to mimic Dick’s posture as he waited for it to hit green.

“Loser buys at the diner,” he said, pressing the ‘2’ button as the race started. He grinned as he pulled ahead of the pack, quickly shooting into first place. He narrowed his eyes when he saw Wally had gotten off the start just as fast as he had.

“It’s on,” Wally said. “Get ready to pay and I mean pay big.”

“Yeah right,” Dick scoffed, swerving around the second corner. He smashed through the first row of mystery blocks, waiting for his weapon. He hummed at the red shells and pulled them out, letting them float and spin around his character as he continued to race around the track.

He kept an eye on the placement of the characters in the corner of the screen and when he got around the corner of one of the trickier turns he sent one of the shells behind him. He watched in glee as it slammed into Wally’s character and sent him spinning in the air.

“Dick!” he cried, smashing the buttons to try and get moving again.

He cackled. “I told you, you’re not going to beat me,” he said as he finished his first lap and started the next.

Wally grumbled next to him and perched on the edge of the couch, leaning forward to concentrate on the race. He wasn’t in last place, but it would take a lot to make it back to second and then to try and pass Dick to claim first.

Dick zoomed around the corners of the track, evading the banana peels the other characters had left behind and the shock blocks in the middle of the road. He was just starting his third lap when something shoved at his side.

His breath left hm and he fell against the couch cushion but kept his hands steady, fighting to correct his course even as he stayed sideways on the couch. He shoved his foot against Wally’s shoulder, pushing him to the side.

“Hey!” Wally said as the pressure made his hands jerk, his character running into the grass and slowing him down.

“That’s what you get for trying to sabotage me, Walls,” Dick said, eyes focused on the screen.

“Get your stinky foot off me,” he grumbled, trying to push Dick off.

“Nope, it’s your punishment for trying to push me off course,” Dick said. He grinned when he made it around the last bend and spotted the finish line in the distance. He pulled his foot from Wally’s shoulder and sat up, keeping his hands level as he rushed towards the checkered banner.

He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and stood from the couch, avoiding Wally’s attempt to knock him over as he flew across the finish.

“Aw, come on,” Wally groaned.

“That’s what you get for trying to make me lose,” Dick said, sticking his tongue out at him.

“We still have three more races, this isn’t over yet,” he said, waving his controller at Dick.

“It was over before it started,” Dick said, grabbing a cookie and taking the seat at the opposite end of the couch from Wally. He wasn’t going to let him take any more stabs at making him lose a free dinner. He didn’t necessarily need it, but it was so much fun making Wally pay for him and even more fun watching him lose.

Wally grumbled and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees while Dick sat cross-legged, sinking into the couch cushions behind him, looking totally relaxed despite the insults and jabs he tossed back and forth with Wally.

The second race went as much the same as the first. Wally jumped up and tried to force Dick off course by tormenting him, but Dick ran around behind the couch, avoiding any attempts he had to screw him up.

During the third race, Wally tried standing in front of Dick to keep his eyes off the screen, but that backfired when Wally took more care in trying to block Dick’s view that he kept driving off the side of the course himself, leaving him in last place with no hope of catching up to Dick, let alone the NPCs.

“That’s my official win,” Dick said as the scenery changed to the fourth track. “I don’t have to win this one, but I’m going to.”

Wally grumbled beside him. He’d sagged back on the couch and was munching on a cookie. Dick took pity on him and sat next to him, patting him on the head. Wally swatted at his hand and Dick pulled it back, chuckling at him. Wally huffed and slammed against him, pressing him into the cushions.

“Hey!” Dick protested as the race started.

“You’re so mean,” Wally said, pushing the controller from his hands and abandoning his own. “Why am I even friends with you?”

Their characters sat at the starting line as the rest of them took off on the track.

“Now we’re both going to lose,” Dick whined, squirming underneath Wally’s tall frame.

“Serves you right. You could afford to lose at something sometimes.”

Dick huffed and shoved at Wally, forcing him off and onto the floor. Wally yelped when he landed on the controllers and rubbed at his back. Dick rolled onto his back on the cushions and cackled, feeling better than he had since that afternoon. Wally sat up and glared at him, but he just grinned back, feeling light and happy and a little relieved that it was Wally there with him.

~~

Dick stared at the hall pass he’d been given as he made his way to the principle’s office during his second class. He was usually never called down and he couldn’t remember doing anything that would warrant a visit to the principle yet. He hadn’t pranked anyone, and it was usually Wally who was blamed for his antics and not him.

He knocked on her open door and she looked up and smiled. “Dick!” she greeted and waved him in. “Come in, come in.”

“Why did you want to see me?” Dick asked, sitting on the edge of one of her plush chairs.

“I wanted to apologize again that we had to cut the gymnastics program this year, but I had another opportunity you might be interested in.”

Dick perked up. “What is it?”

“I know it’s not going to be the same as what you were hoping to do, but the cheer team could use some help with their tumbling and acrobatics and since you’re so well trained you might be able to help. It’s sort of like a coaching position.”

Dick stared at her, his brain starting to think it over. He knew it wouldn’t be the same as being able to compete and he wouldn’t have the resources he would get from a gym, but he’d get to work with people at his school and he’d get to tumble. It didn’t matter if he wasn’t getting paid since he didn’t need the money anyway, and while they were practicing their routines, he could probably have free use of the mats to practice his own stuff.

He looked up at the principle who was still watching him. “I’ll do it,” he said.

She smiled, looking more than a little relieved. “That’s great! I’m so glad to hear it. The cheer team is meeting today after school in the gym for their first practice. They normally meet out on the football field, but the coach is still working out some things with the team. You can get everything squared away with her this afternoon.”

Dick nodded. “Thank you, I…thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Dick gave her one last look before he turned and hurried from the office, a grin pulling at his lips as excitement and happiness bubbled in his chest.


	2. Chapter 2

Dick saw a familiar tuft of red hair in the hall and raced towards it. Wally looked up in time to see him sprinting towards him and grinned, throwing his arms wide as Dick launched himself at him. Wally laughed and spun him around.

“What’s up, dude?” he asked, setting him back on his feet. “You sure look happy.”

“You’ll never guess what happened!” he said excitedly, clutching at Wally’s shoulders.

“Yeah so you might as well tell me.”

“I got asked to help coach the cheer team! They need help with their tumbling and acrobatics and the principal talked to the coach about bringing me on.”

Wally grinned, arms snagging Dick around the waist as he spun him around again, whooping and hollering. “That’s amazing, dude! I mean yeah it won’t be the same as an actual gymnastics team, but you get to be around a bunch of girls in short skirts,” he said, wagging his eyebrows.

Dick rolled his eyes and shoved at Wally’s shoulders. “I could care less about that. How can you not see how great this is going to be to practice on the mats?”

Wally raised an eyebrow. “You’re seriously passing girls over for tumbling mats?” he asked.

Dick huffed. “Just…shut up,” he grumbled.

Wally chuckled and threw an arm around his shoulders. “Soooo when do you start?”

“Today. I’m actually on my way to meet the coach and the rest of the team in the gym for practice. And you have to get to your own practice.”

“Yup! And I gotta hurry or coach is going to make me run extra laps again,” he said, dropping his arm from Dick’s shoulders before darting off down the hallway towards the locker room.

“Make them eat your dust, Kid Flash!” Dick called after him.

He got an answering whoop in return and chuckled, continuing straight down the short hallway that led to the two gyms the school housed. He glimpsed a group of girls through one of the door windows and pulled the door open, sticking his head through. A large row of mats had been stretched out across the floor and he recognized Megan’s red hair immediately.

Dick grinned and stepped inside, striding forward as he tried to pick out the coach among them. The door closed loudly behind him, catching the attention of everyone there and he nearly hesitated at the piercing gazes that settled on him.

“Start warming up, girls,” a short woman instructed before walking over to meet Dick. The group spread out on the mat and started stretching and doing other warm up exercises. “You must be Dick Grayson,” she said, holding out a hand that Dick quickly shook. “I’m Coach Jones.”

“Nice to meet you,” he said, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“When the principal told me you’d accepted the offer to help the team, I was ecstatic we’d have such a skilled gymnast working with us this year.”

Dick flushed. “Thank you. I’m just glad to have the opportunity since the gymnastics program was cut.”

“And I’m sorry to hear about that, but if you don’t mind I’d like to tell you a little bit more about what you’ll be helping out with since I’m not sure how many details you were given,” she said starting back towards the mats.

Dick followed her. “She just said you needed help with tumbling and acrobatics.”

Coach Jones nodded. “That’s right. Some of our cheerleaders don’t have much gymnastics experiences so the tumbling is new for them. I try to help them where I can, but it’s tough to watch the routine and try and fix and mistakes in form or teach a new move when I have so many other girls to worry about.”

Dick nodded.

“So I’m hoping that you can take care of those things. Maybe give some one on one instruction to the girls who are struggling a little more or need a couple extra practices to make sure they’re doing things correctly and safe. Do you think you can manage that?”

“Yeah, definitely. That doesn’t sound too bad. Can you go over the routines with me later?”

She nodded. “I’ve got videos of the routines if you want to look at them and learn how they’re supposed to be done. Today’s going to be more of an observation day for you so you can get a sense of how things are run with our group.”

“Okay. What’s your practice schedule usually like?”

“We practice every day after school except for game days and the Friday before weekend tournaments. Starting tomorrow we’re going to be out on the football field. The school’s maintenance department is going to get our mats moved out there for us before practice. Besides that, are you ready to get started?” she asked with a smile.

Dick grinned. “Definitely.”

They came to a stop at the edge of the mats and many of the girls slowed in their warmups as they took notice of Dick. Megan and Zatanna waved at Dick and he waved back at them, feeling a little shy.

Coach Jones placed a hand on his shoulder. “Ladies, I’d like to introduce you to Dick Grayson. He’s going to be helping me out this year with coaching you in tumbling and doing your flips and handsprings. He’s got extensive gymnastics training and is more than qualified to help out.”

Most of the girls stared at him, some with wide eyes and open mouths. Coach Jones cleared her throat and they snapped out of their daze, clapping for him.

“Uh, thank you,” Dick said awkwardly. “I’m happy to be helping out.”

“Finish going through your warmups and then we’re going to get started on practicing one of our routines,” Coach Jones broke in. They got back to work and she turned to Dick. “You can have a seat on the bench over there. If you have any questions, I’m all ears.”

“Sure,” he said, turning to walk around the mats to take a seat on the bench that was pushed against the wall. He dropped his backpack at his feet and tucked one of his legs underneath himself, watching as the cheerleaders worked through the rest of their warmups.

A few of them still had eyes on Dick and he hoped it was more out of lingering surprise than anything else.

Coach Jones clapped her hands and placed herself at the edge of the mat, crossing her arms. “Get into formation girls, let’s run through our first routine. Flyers, keep your tucks tight and spotters stay in formation at all times. We don’t need any injuries this early in the school year.”

They nodded and took up their positions. Dick glanced around when they didn’t make any immediate move to start practicing until one of the girls took a breath.

“5, 6, 7, 8.”

Their movements were mostly in sync and Dick didn’t envy them having to remember words and movements for each routine. If he was in their position, he would be too focused on making sure his body was moving the way he needed it too.

As the flyers were held in the air by their base spotters, three girls in front did back tucks and Dick winced. Their form was sloppy at best and two of them weren’t landing correctly. He wondered if they’d gotten injured before by doing the movements. And if they hadn’t, then they would definitely get hurt in the future.

The flyers were able to keep their legs together and hands at their sides and Dick was relieved the spotters were watching them and catching them properly. The back handsprings weren’t much better and the back handspring back tuck at the end of the routine was just embarrassing, four of the girls stepping out because their landings weren’t sticking.

Dick sighed and stood, walking over to Coach Jones. He cleared his throat and she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “I know you just wanted me to observe today, but do you mind if I correct their form? I’m worried if they practice much more like this, they’re going to hurt themselves.”

“You’re more than welcome to but are you sure you don’t need to change?” she asked, nodding towards his jeans.

He grinned. “Nah, don’t worry. I’ve got this,” he said, stepping onto the mat.

The cheerleaders immediately gave him their attention.

“Not to interrupt your practice or anything, but the form on your back handsprings and your back tucks needs work. If some of you haven’t been injured yet, then the way you’re landing the moves is going to get you injured in the future. So, what I want you to keep an eye on is how straight my legs are when I land. I’m also landing on the flat of my foot and trying to keep the weight towards my heel to avoid injury.”

Dick rolled his shoulders and took a spot in the middle of the mat as the other girls moved to the edge of the mat.

“I’m going to start with a back handspring, then I’ll do a back tuck, and then a back handspring back tuck,” he said.

He let out a breath and closed his eyes. It was almost second nature as he bent his legs and his eyes snapped forward. He pushed himself backwards, landing on his hands before using his momentum to finish the handspring and land on his feet.

It felt good and he almost forgot that he was demonstrating as he walked back to his starting point. The girls were quiet around him as he took his position. He didn’t even need a centering breath this time as he pushed off the ground and pulled his knees to his chest, spinning backwards in the air before he landed on the mat with a soft thump.

Dick thought he saw someone pull out a phone but ignored it as he set himself up again. The back handspring back tuck was the most satisfying. It gave him the chance to move and twist his body in a way that he always seemed to crave. He was weightless, and the move ended too soon, bringing him back to earth once again before he got the chance to defy gravity once more.

“Okay, any questions?” he asked, turning to face the group. He was startled to find everyone watching him with open mouths and the fact Zatanna _did_ have a phone out. She blinked and came back to herself, tapping away at it before she tucked it out of sight.

The cheerleaders shared a look before they broke out into thunderous applause. Dick blushed and scratched the back of his head.

“That was great, Dick,” Coach Jones said, stepping up next to him. She rested a hand on his shoulder. “Let’s take it three at a time and go through the maneuvers so Dick can correct your form, starting with you three,” she said pointing at the edge of the group.

The three girls shared a nervous look and stepped forward. Dick and Coach Jones gave them some space and Dick stood to the side so he could see their profiles. They each took a steadying breath as Dick had before doing a back handspring.

Dick grinned when they landed those effectively. He gave them all a nod and they moved to the back tuck which was a little rougher.

“Make sure you really focus on keeping your legs straight for the landing. It can be easy to let them bend or weaken, especially if you’re getting tired, but you don’t want to put extra pressure on the wrong muscles,” he explained. “Try it again.”

They repeated the back tuck and he gave them an encouraging smile.

“Better, but something we’ll need to work on,” he said kindly. “Try them together now.”

He practically winced when they did the back handspring back tuck and tried not to let it show.

“You lost focus near the end of that maneuver and how you fixed your landing on the back tuck a minute ago was almost completely gone this time. I know how tiring repeated maneuvers can get, especially after you’ve been jumping and spinning all over the place but keep that focus at the end. Run it again.”

They managed to stay focused and get the landing, but their form would still need some work.

“Better,” he said with a smile. “Let’s move on to the next group.” He motioned for the next three girls to step forward. Zatanna was in this group and she smiled at him and he offered her a nod. “Same process as before.”

Dick watched as they slowly went around the group and did the maneuvers. He corrected where he needed to and even though everything wasn’t perfect it was certainly an improvement over where they had been.

“You’re looking great girls. Now that you’ve worked on your maneuvers, let’s go through the routine again,” Coach Jones said when they’d finished.

Dick stepped back off the mat and watched as they took their formation again. He watched their movements closely, pleased that the improvement from his instruction stuck. They still had work to do, but it was a start on turning them into a successful cheer team.

Coach Jones placed a hand on his shoulder and he looked up at her, exchanging a smile.

“Looking great, girls,” she said, patting Dick’s shoulder before taking a step forward. “Let’s move to the next one. Sequence two.”

They nodded and moved places, moving into a V-shape. Dick crossed his arms and waited.

Their second routine was all tumbling, acrobatics, and calls. They had no flyers which meant everyone was under the same strain. Their form held up for the little work Dick managed to do with them, but he found other weaknesses in their roundoffs and back flip half-twists.

“What did you think?” Coach Jones asked when they finished, their breathing heavier now that they’d done all their maneuvers.

Dick gave her a tight smile. “Not bad, but…I have my work cut out for me,” he said softly.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “You’ve got plenty of time.”

And Dick guessed he had. It hit him that this wasn’t just a onetime thing. He was a part of this team even if he wasn’t performing with them. His job was behind the scenes where he got to train them and make them look their best while they performed.

“Yeah,” he said absentmindedly. “I guess I do.”

Dick made mental notes as they went through their next routine, matching weaknesses with faces so he could remember them later when he worked with them individually. He’d make physical notes later and bring a notebook with him to keep track of progress.

“Good job today, girls. Go through your cooldown and then you’re free to go,” Coach Jones said when they’d finished their last routine.

The team smiled wearily, and a few wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

“Dick?” she asked when the team sat down to stretch. “Mind if we exchange notes?”

He nodded and followed her over to the bench.

“So what did you think?” she asked when they were both seated.

“They’re all great athletes and they have the potential. We just have to put in the work and they’re going to be amazing.”

Coach Jones smiled. “Especially with your help. Think you can get them in better shape by the game next Friday?”

Dick blinked. “Uhhh…” he said eloquently.

She chuckled and patted him on the arm. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’m not expecting them to be perfect but keeping their form from deteriorating as they get tired is my number one priority.”

Dick thought it over and nodded. “I think that we can definitely manage that.”

“Perfect. I’ll get some reference materials ready for you tomorrow so you can look them over. As for now, I think it’s time to call it a day.” She stood and clapped her hands, walking over to the mats. “Alright girls, great practice today. Go ahead and get home.”

They nodded and moved to collect their bags. Dick felt a little out of place as they held their own conversations and he grabbed his own backpack, expecting nothing more than getting to wait on the curb for Alfred to come pick him up.

“Hey Dick!”

He glanced up and watched as Megan and Zatanna hurried over to him.

“What’s up?” he asked.

“We were going to hit up the diner with a few friends. You should come with us,” Zatanna explained.

“You sure?” he asked.

“Of course!” Megan said. “We’d love to have you along.”

“Okay,” he said with a nod, following them to the gym doors.

Warm sunlight greeted them as they stepped outside, the doors creaking loudly.

“Dick!”

He grinned and whirled around, catching sight of Wally who was jogging towards them. “Hey Walls!” he said, giving him a high-five when he caught up to them. “You just get done with practice?”

“Yup!” he chirped happily. “And I feel great!” he said, throwing his arms out to the side.

Dick chuckled. “We just got done, too.”

“How was the first day?” Wally asked, elbowing him in the side playfully.

“Not bad, got to do some stuff,” Dick said.

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. “You got to do _stuff,_ he mimicked.

“Way to undersell it,” Zatanna said from behind them.

Dick winced, forgetting the pair was waiting for him.

“Ah so you see through his lies, too,” Wally said, nodding in agreement.

“It wasn’t that impressive,” Dick started.

Megan and Zatanna shared a look. Zatanna rolled her eyes and pulled out her phone, turning it to show them a video she’d posted on Instagram of his back handspring back tuck.

“You posted that on Instagram?” Dick asked.

“Holy shit that’s awesome!” Wally said, swiping the phone from her hand to get a closer look.

Dick felt himself flush. “It’s not that big a deal.”

“Dude,” Wally said, leveling him with an unimpressed look before he went back to watching the video loop.

“I mean…” he started, floundering for something to say.

“Why don’t we continue this conversation at the Diner?” Megan said. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for my post-practice snack and I’m sure Connor’s already waiting for us.”

“All you had to do was mention food and I’m right there with you,” Wally said. “Come on, Dick,” he said, grabbing his arm to drag him along the sidewalk.


	3. Chapter 3

By the time their little group walked into the diner, Wally had his arm comfortably thrown around Dick’s shoulders and was chatting animatedly with Megan and Zatanna. Dick was content to sit back and listen to the conversation that meandered every which way since Wally always thought of a new topic even when they were in the middle of discussing something else.

“Connor!” Megan suddenly said, halting their conversation.

They all looked up to see where Megan was looking and found a muscular teenager waving from a booth against the large windows of the diner. Megan and Zatanna hurried ahead while Dick and Wally followed them.

Megan wasted no time sliding onto the seat next to Connor and throwing her arms around him. Zatanna took the seat next to her and Dick slid into the other side of the booth with Wally. Dick immediately pulled his legs up onto the seat to sit cross-legged, making himself comfortable.

Wally elbowed him in the side and rolled his eyes. “Can you sit like a normal person for once in your life?” he asked.

Dick shrugged and tossed a menu in front of him. “Normal is boring. And this is more comfortable,” he argued, pulling a second menu from the stand so he could start glancing through it.

Someone cleared their throat across from them and Dick looked up, seeing Connor watching them.

“Right,” Dick said. “I guess we should probably introduce ourselves. I’m Dick and that’s Wally,” he said, pointing at his friend who’d already turned to the list of milkshakes that were available.

Wally looked up and gave a little wave. “Hey Dick, what are you getting?” he asked, looking over at him.

“I think I’ll get a chocolate brownie milkshake and maybe some fries. What about you?”

“Chili fries for sure and the caramel milkshake looks good.”

“You’re getting the biggest order or chili fries they have, aren’t you?” Dick asked with a grin.

Wally scoffed. “Duh. I can’t let all that delicious food go to waste.”

“What can I get for you today?” their server asked, stepping up next to the table.

They all ordered different milkshakes from the menu and Dick got a basket of fries to share with Megan and Zatanna while Wally and Connor got their own baskets of chili fries.

Once their server left, Wally started tapping his foot against the floor in a quick rhythm.

“Say, Connor,” Wally said, tapping a finger against his chin. “Have we met each other before? Do we have a class together or something?”

Connor nodded. “Yeah, we have Chemistry together.”

Wally snapped his fingers and grinned. “That’s right! Wasn’t it your group that already broke a test tube during our first lab?”

Connor flushed and crossed his arms. “It wasn’t my fault. My lab partners were being idiots.”

Wally grimaced. “Yeah, I’ve had them in a couple of other classes. They’re not the brightest. For our next lab if we get to pick partners we can work together. I promise not to break anything. On purpose anyway.”

“That would be great, actually,” Connor agreed. “I’d like to work with someone who’s actually competent in the lab.”

Dick snorted. “Then Wally is definitely the right guy for that. He’s gotten a home chemistry kit every year for Christmas since he was six.”

“Dick!” Wally cried.

Dick smirked. “Come on, you can’t really be embarrassed about that. Besides, it’s Barry who buys them for you anyway.”

Wally’s face flushed. “Yes. Fine. Okay,” he grumbled, trying to pout. It didn’t last long when their server came back through and dropped off their milkshakes.

They all sat in silence for a moment, enjoying the taste of their drinks.

“You want to try?” Wally asked, sliding his caramel milkshake over to Dick.

He nodded and passed Wally his own, taking a deep suck from Wally’s drink. He licked his lips and passed it back.

“It’s good,” he admitted. “But I still prefer mine.”

“Only because you have no taste for which milkshake is obviously superior,” Wally said, turning his nose up at him.

Dick snickered and glanced across the table, finding the other three watching them with thinly veiled interest.

Dick cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “So, Connor are you on a sports team?” he asked.

Connor blinked. “Yeah. I’m on the football team.”

“Figures,” Wally said with a nod. “Is that how the three of you met? You being on the football team, them being cheerleaders?”

The three of them shared a look.

“Connor and I knew each other before he played football and I started cheering. And then I met Zatanna through cheerleading and that’s how she became friends with us,” Megan explained.

“I guess you’ll be seeing a lot of each other than, huh?” Wally asked with a grin, elbowing Dick playfully.

“Yeah, right,” Dick scoffed. “I’m just helping out with practice.”

“You’re not going to come to the games?” Megan asked, looking disappointed.

Dick shrugged. “I don’t think I’ll need to be there with the team, but I guess I could always watch from the stands.”

“You’re good enough that you could probably cheer with us,” Zatanna pointed out.

Dick spluttered, stomach tightening as he fought to come up with some kind of excuse.

“If you need anything else, give me a holler,” their server said, popping up once again and dropping off their food.

She disappeared and Zatanna popped a fry into her mouth.

“You really are though,” Zatanna continued around the food in her mouth. “Your skills are amazing and I’m sure you wouldn’t have a problem picking up the routines with the rest of us.”

Dick shook his head, stirring his straw in his drink. “I’m really not that good-“

“Oh, come on!” Wally said, leveling him with a look.

“What?” he asked, feeling uncertain.

“I saw the video. Which was amazing by the way. Don’t listen to his lies Connor, he’s really good and is probably an Olympic level gymnast at this point. But you’re always underselling yourself when it comes to gymnastics. That video shows how good you are. It’s not going to lie, and you deserve to be praised for what you can do,” Wally scoffed, scooping up a fry covered in chili and cheese.

Dick flushed, his cheeks heating as he fought not to fidget in his seat.

“You’re obviously good enough to be coaching us,” Zatanna broke in with a nod. “There’s nothing wrong with being told that. You obviously don’t have an ego problem.”

“See?” Wally said, throwing an arm around Dick’s shoulders and pulling him tightly against his side.

Dick’s blush got worse at the contact and he was struggling to figure out why. It was one thing to be embarrassed over the attention he was given because of his gymnastics ability, but Wally didn’t factor into that at all. Unless he counted Wally because it was mostly him who was praising Dick for his abilities.

“It’s just not that big of a deal,” Dick said, voice sounding weak to his ears.

Wally huffed. “Fine. Don’t believe me right now, but I’m going to prove it to you that it’s something to be proud of and not something you need to shove into the dark corners of your brain like you can’t talk about it or acknowledge it.”

“I never said I wasn’t acknowledging it,” Dick grumbled, reaching for his milkshake. He took a long sip. “It’s just not that big of a deal.”

“Even if it’s not a big deal to you, it can still be important to other people,” Connor broke in gently. “It gives other people a level to aspire to,” he said with a shrug as he shoved another fry into his mouth.

Dick opened and closed his mouth, trying to find something to say or some response to that, but he was decidedly lacking.

“Now that you’ve finally stopped denying the _truth_ ,” Wally said, pulling his arm from around Dick’s shoulders so he could use both hands to eat. “We have other things to discuss.”

“Such as?” Dick asked, raising an eyebrow now that the blood was starting to leave his face.

“The movies that are coming out this weekend, duh,” Wally scoffed.

“Oh,” Dick said, straightening. “That new superhero movie is coming out right?”

Wally nodded. “Yup! It’s going to be awesome. We should go see it.”

“Yeah, definitely. Do you guys like superhero movies?” he asked, glancing across the table.

Zatanna shrugged. “They’re not bad. Exciting I guess.”

“I always love going to the movies,” Megan gushed. “I haven’t been in so long. There weren’t a lot of interesting ones in the theater over the summer.”

“Yeah,” Wally grumbled. “I was so disappointed.”

“You were disappointed?” Dick asked, raising an eyebrow. “We stayed in and marathoned _Star Trek_ because you wanted to re-watch all the seasons.”

“Yeah, but it’s not the same as going to the movies,” he insisted.

Dick snorted and plucked a handful of fries from the basket he was sharing with Megan and Zatanna.

“Are you forgetting about the several _Star Trek_ movie installments, too?”

“I just really want to go to the movies, okay?” he asked, elbowing Dick in the side.

“Then let’s go. You’re not busy on Saturday, are you?” Dick asked, dipping one of his fries in his milkshake.

“No more than usual,” Wally agreed. “You guys want to come, too?”

“I’d love to,” Megan said, and Connor shrugged.

“Ooh, we should make a group chat,” Wally said, pulling out his phone. “Give me your phone numbers,” he said, sliding his phone across the table.

They dutifully passed the phone around and Dick shifted when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw Alfred’s name flashing across the screen as Wally tapped at his own phone.

“Hi Alfred,” he said, taking the call. “Did you need something?”

“Master Richard, I’ll be around to pick you up soon. Master Bruce will be home for dinner this evening and would like to eat with you.”

“Sure thing, Alfred. I’m at the diner down the street from school,” he said, glancing up when he heard the conversation stop around him.

“I’ll be there shortly, Master Richard.”

“Okay. Thanks, Alfred,” he said, hanging up.

“Alfred’s coming to steal you, isn’t he?” Wally asked, lips pulling down in a pout.

“Yeah. Bruce is going to be home for dinner and wants us to try and do the whole normal parent-child thing.”

“But we just got here,” Wally whined.

Dick chuckled and shoved him in the shoulder. “It’s not like we won’t see each other at the movies tomorrow and you can text me later. I’m not going to disappear for several weeks.”

“You really have to go so soon?” Megan asked.

He nodded. “Yeah. Alfred is pretty intense about family obligations, but it’s nice. We haven’t had dinner together in a while since Bruce has been so busy with work. It was great hanging out with all of you this afternoon, though. We’ll have to do this again, sometime.”

“We usually get together after practices,” Zatanna said. “You should come with us next time. And bring Wally of course. I’m sure he’d be insulted if you left him behind.”

Dick grinned as Wally spluttered next to him. He saw a familiar black car pull up next to the curb. “That’s Alfred. Gotta go.” He made to shove out of the booth, but Wally didn’t budge.

“Wally, you have to let me out,” he huffed.

“No,” Wally grumbled.

Dick rolled his eyes and braced a hand on the table and the back of the booth. He pulled his legs out from underneath the table and squatted on the booth cushions before he jumped over Wally’s lap to land on the floor.

“Not fair.”

Dick cackled and grinned at his new friends, almost faltering when he saw Zatanna’s eyes flicker between him and Wally. He cleared his throat and dropped several bills on the table.

“That’s for my food,” he said with a wave before he hurried for the door.

Alfred had the rear door of the car open when he hit the sidewalk.

“Afternoon Alfred,” Dick greeted before climbing into the backseat.

“Of course, Master Richard,” he said before shutting the door and climbing into the front seat.

Soft, classical music filled the car as Alfred turned the key in the ignition. He pulled away from the curb and drove around the block until he was turned back towards the edge of town that would lead to the residential district where the Manor was located.

Dick tapped his fingers against his jeans and watched the buildings pass. People walked along the sidewalk in various forms of dress, some were obviously college students while others were impeccable business people, dressed in suits and carrying briefcases with important or not so important documents.

The crowds thinned the closer they got to the edge of town and Dick watched the people fall away as they drove past the upscale apartment complexes. The buildings fell away entirely in favor of the lush green grasses of the golf courses and the occasional suburb.

The large Manors and estates of the wealthy district lingered on the horizon, growing closer as the road flew by underneath the smooth tires of the car.

The gates in front of Wayne Manor slid open easily thanks to the electronic sensor Alfred had in the car and they drove up to the garage, pulling inside.

Dick climbed out on his own while Alfred shut off the car.

“I’ll be up in my room,” Dick called over his shoulder as he hurried into the house ahead of Alfred.

He raced through the side door and sprinted up the stairs, enjoying the burn it gave his legs to push his muscles in an unfamiliar way.

He sighed when he entered his room and walked over to his desk, fighting to catch his breath even though he was giddy at the physical exertion. He set his backpack next to his desk and kicked off his shoes, stooping to pick them up and stow them safely in his closet.

Dick settled into his desk chair, crossing his legs underneath him. He reached over and pulled several books and papers from his backpack. He didn’t necessarily need to start on his homework yet since it was Friday, but he’d rather have it done so he didn’t have to worry about it later.

He flipped open his Algebra textbook and pulled a clean sheet of paper from his notebook, jotting down the list of problems that needed to be completed.

He tapped his pencil against the pages of the textbook, his mind already wandering even though he hadn’t started on the first problem. He wondered if Wally and Megan and Zatanna and Connor were still in the diner. They hadn’t finished their milkshakes when he’d had to leave, and Wally was more likely than not going to order another basket of chili cheese fries.

Dick swallowed, reminded of how earnest Wally was when it came to his ability to tumble. He knew he was just being a good friend and they were both fiercely supportive of each other. Considering their mutual support was how Wally got his nickname for cross country and track, it was evident to everyone else.

But it still made something tighten in his chest. And then Wally had put his arm around his shoulders. It was something so casual and something they always did, but for some reason it made his heart beat faster.

And then Zatanna had been looking between them like she knew something.

Dick blushed, wondering what she could possibly be thinking. Everything was fine. He just needed to focus on his homework and whatever weird episode he’d had today could be pushed to the side and he wouldn’t have to worry about it.

It was one reaction. He’d concede it was a strange reaction, but it had never happened before and he was sure it wasn’t going to happen again.

Dick took a shaky breath and tried to focus on the numbers in front of him. He could handle numbers. Numbers were easy. They always had an answer. He just had to get to it.

A knock sounded on the door and Dick sat up, looking over his shoulder.

“Yeah?” he asked.

“Dick, can I come in?” Bruce asked through the wood of the door.

“Sure,” he called, pushing his chair away from his desk so he could swivel around and face him when he pushed open the door.

He stepped inside, hands in his pockets. “How was school?”

“Good,” Dick said with a smile. “No problems or pop quizzes yet,” he said happily.

“And practice?” he added, smile pulling at his lips.

Dick straightened. “It was great! I was only supposed to watch today, but I got to help work through the moves the team was struggling with. Coach Jones was really impressed with me and thinks I can help the team get better.”

“That’s great, Dick,” he said, smile never wavering. “Are you going to have to go to the games with them?”

He shrugged. “I’m not sure yet. Maybe? But I’m not going to be performing so less pressure on me. I just have to make them, you know, look good.”

Bruce chuckled. “Well I don’t think you’ll have a problem with that. Do you have any plans for the weekend?”

“I’m going to the movies tomorrow with Wally and some new friends.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow. “One day helping the cheer team and you’ve already got some new friends?”

Dick shrugged.

“Well, I’m glad things are going well. Dinner’s going to be ready soon, so be down to the dining room in about ten minutes.”

Dick nodded. “Sure. I’m just gonna finish this problem real quick.”

“It’s the weekend. Aren’t you supposed to put off your homework as long as possible?” Bruce muttered before walking out.

Dick smiled and turned his chair back around, picking up where he left off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Tumblr](http://my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com/)
> 
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m)


	4. Chapter 4

Dick whistled as he walked out of the rear doors of the school and headed down to the football field. He’d brought a change of workout clothes with him for cheer practice and was glad he’d gone with spandex shorts instead of tights since the sun was beating down outside and the air was humid with the last dredges of summer hanging on.

He could see several members of the cheer team on the mats that were laid out next to the track going through their warmups and stretching while they chatted lazily. The football team was clad in their practice uniforms and huddled in the center of the field, getting the rundown of their practice before they started their warmups.

Dick swung around the fence and walked the last hundred meters around the track to the mats. He dropped his backpack against the metal fence where the other backpacks were and waved at the cheerleaders who smiled at him.

He took the chance to stretch his own muscles. He wasn’t sure how much tumbling he was going to be doing, but keeping his muscles loose was never a bad thing. The other cheerleaders filtered down to the field and Megan and Zatanna gave him a wave when they joined the others.

Dick grinned and waved back.

Coach Jones brought up the rear, a clipboard tucked under her arm. She glanced over the girls stretching, lips moving silently as she counted them off. She sighed when she finished, almost like she knew she was going to be disappointed and had resigned herself to it but couldn’t stop her displeasure from forming.

“Is something wrong?” Dick asked.

“Kayla’s missing today. She told me she had a dermatologist appointment and couldn’t get it rescheduled. She’s one of our flyers and without her it’s going to make the routines look off.”

“But it should be alright for a practice, right?” Dick asked. “You can still go through it.”

She tilted her head to the side. “Sort of. One group of spotters isn’t going to have anyone to spot so for several sequences they’ll be standing around doing nothing. It might be more beneficial to go through technique work.”

“But the game’s on Friday,” Dick blurted.

Coach Jones smiled at him. “It is. And as much as I want to practice our routines for it, I don’t think we’ll be able to do that today.”

The girls had crowded around Coach Jones and Dick, forming a semi-circle as she finished explaining things to Dick.

“What about Dick?” Zatanna asked him.

“What about him?” Coach Jones asked.

“Why can’t he fill in for Kayla. He knows the routines, right?” she asked, giving Dick a look.

“Uh…” Dick trailed off, thinking over the number of hours he’d spent pouring over the binder and videos Coach Jones had given him to look over for the weekend. He had every sequence memorized, wanting to have it in the back of his head come Monday so he could spot any deficiencies in their tumbling and form.

“I mean,” Dick continued, feeling his face heat up. “I did go over the routines over the weekend.”

“Do you feel comfortable filling in?” Coach Jones asked. “You don’t have to, but we’d be more than happy to let you. And we wouldn’t expect you to know them as well as everyone else.”

Dick’s uncertainty fell away, and a sudden competitiveness surged up in his veins. He knew he could do them as well as everyone else. He had them memorized and could at least execute all of the acrobatics flawlessly.

“I’ll do it,” he said, squaring his shoulders.

The girls cheered and Megan and Zatanna gave each other a high-five.

“Well, then I guess we better get started,” Coach Jones said. “Get into your first formation. It’s the easiest routine and one I know we’ll all benefit warming up on. Dick, you’ll be over here,” she said, directing him into his new spot. “Do you know which part of the routine you’ll be doing?”

Dick frowned and closed his eyes, mentally going over everything he’d watched and read. He opened his eyes and nodded, finding himself settling into his position on the mat so he was spaced between the girls in front and behind him.

“Don’t worry, I got it.”

She nodded and stepped back off the mat.

Dick tried to plaster on his perfect performance smile like everyone else was doing but already found his mind several steps ahead, cataloguing and reviewing what he would need to do and how to do it successfully. The routine their coach had picked to start with was a good one. In his position he wouldn’t have to do any impressive aerial moves.

He wouldn’t be thrown into the air, but he would be lifted and need to balance while his weight was taken on by the spotters below him. For once he was glad he hadn’t hit his growth spurt yet and wouldn’t give them any extra muscle to throw around.

“5, 6, 7, 8,” Coach Jones called.

Dick fell into the movements easily. He kept his arms rigid through the claps. The girls around him called the beginning chant but he ignored it, not wanting to have to multi-task when he was so focused on getting to his spot in time with everyone else.

He walked backwards before doing a back handspring. It felt good and served to loosen up his muscles. The lingering anxiety he hadn’t noticed from being asked to step in finally dissipated and he felt at home with what he was doing.

Hands grabbed his hips and pulled him back until he was surrounded by a small group. He gave them an apologetic smile, but they waved him off, forcing his hands onto their shoulders to brace himself.

The first weightless second where he was off the ground and only supported by the hands on his feet was terrifying. This wasn’t the same sensation as tumbling in the slightest. He had no control over his defiance of gravity and was left at the mercy of the people below him, needing to trust them to keep him upright.

Dick could feel the pressure on his feet and tightened his abs to keep himself steady. He didn’t need to sway because he knew the second he overbalanced he’d go crashing to the ground and take everyone below him with him.

He clapped his hands in sync with the other two girls and lifted his right leg when it was released. The girl in the center caught his foot and held it in place as they hit their final pose, Dick’s arms angled upwards out from his sides as he forced his smile to stay in place.

Coach Jones nodded at them and Dick pulled his leg back, keeping his hands at his sides before he was dropped back to the ground, bending his knees to help absorb the impact as the hands on his hips slowed his descent.

“Very nice,” Coach Jones commented. “It looked good for a warmup. Now let’s put a little more enthusiasm into it. Keep those back handsprings tight. Our top row was looking good but remember that you’re here to enjoy yourselves. The crowd isn’t going to get excited if it looks like none of you want to be here. Take if from the top.”

Dick rolled his shoulders as he stepped back into his starting position. He sucked in a breath through his nose and let it out slowly through his mouth, feeling some of the tension leave his body.

He kept his gaze steady on the people around him and plastered a smile onto his face as Coach Jones counted them off.

The second run was easier than the first, not just for Dick but for everyone on the squad. They were relaxed and aware of themselves. And now that Dick knew what it felt like to be supported by his feet and to put his trust in a handful of other people to keep him upright, it felt easy and natural.

He wasn’t straining so hard to keep the performance aspect at the forefront of what he was doing.

“Very good,” Coach Jones complimented when they finished.

Dick accepted the high-fives from the girls around him.

“Now let’s move onto our next routine. Flyers, make sure to keep things tight on your spins. Your hands need to be at your sides and your legs together.”

Dick swallowed, and Coach Jones met his eye, giving him a nod. Dick smiled and nodded back before taking his position. Tossing himself into the air was one thing, but having other people toss him into the air was…nerve-wracking and terrifying.

He was glad the first part of the routine had a lot of floor work for him. Cartwheels, roundoffs, and back handsprings were things he’d been able to do since he was a little kid. He stayed relaxed and the grin pulling at his lips wasn’t even for show anymore.

He tried not to think of everything that could go wrong when he was pulled backwards. He swallowed, and hands settled on his hips before he was pushed upwards.

Practiced hands wrapped around his feet and kept him upright. He clapped his hands and smiled, keeping in time with the other cheerleaders.

His eyes roved over the field around them and he saw the cross-country team making their way across the grass for their practice. Wally was easy to spot with his bright red hair and yellow shoes that stood out against the grass.

Dick chuckled as he saw him waving a hand wildly over his head in his direction, pushing himself faster to get around the curve so he’d be running alongside the edge of the football field that came closest to Dick.

He didn’t make it before Dick’s body dipped, the arms holding him up bending below him before he was pushed upwards and into the air.

Dick went with the movement, letting his body spin and twist easily. He kept his legs together and hands stiff at his sides so as not to disrupt his momentum. He caught a glimpse of the blue sky and allowed himself one moment to appreciate it before he was plummeting back towards the earth.

He didn’t spare a second to panic or worry that he might not land in the safe cushion of his teammates’ arms and would instead smash into the ground.

Dick’s breath left him in a gentle gasp as he landed in the cradle that had been created by the girls below him as they absorbed the impact form his body and helped him back on his feet.

He walked forward, moving into his next spot in the formation. Coach Jones was smiling, piercing eyes following every movement as they started a ripple of back tucks. Dick executed his happily, landing easily before he straightened, hitting his final pose with a grin on his face, breathing only slightly heavier than normal.

“Very good,” Coach Jones complimented when they finished. “I think that’s the best I’ve ever seen this routine. And congratulations to our new flyer.”

Dick blushed as the girls around him clapped.

“Thanks,” he said, scratching the back of his neck.

“Now, let’s see if you can do that again and better this time,” she continued, sharp glimmer shining in her eye.

Some of the girls mock-groaned but quickly dissolved into happy laughter as they moved back to their starting positions. Dick felt his chest warm at the atmosphere. This is what he’d wanted: a group of people who knew how to tease and have fun, but they also took their sport seriously and wanted to be better and to improve.

Even if he didn’t do much with them other than coach, he could get used to being around them. They could definitely end up being great friends before the end of the year.

~~

Dick popped the cap off his water bottle and chugged half of it like he was a dying man. He gasped and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. The rest of the team was just as sweaty and chugging water like their lives depended on it. Which they kind of did in that moment.

They circled around Coach Jones who looked happy with their practice.

“Well done, everyone,” she said with a nod, holding her clipboard tightly at her side. “Today’s practice was very impressive for how early in the season it is. And because we had a stand-in for our usual flyer.”

One of the girls threw up her hand and Coach Jones, looking amused, nodded at her.

“What is it Rebecca?” she asked.

“Can Dick join the team? Like, for real and not just to coach us on our tumbling?” she asked.

Dick blinked and looked around at the rest of them as they nodded and voiced their agreement.

“But…I…” he started. “I’m just…”

“You’re amazing,” Rebecca huffed, rolling her eyes. “You’d be great to have on our team and even if you don’t cheer at every game, it would be awesome to have someone like you as a backup in case one of us is sick or gets injured.”

Dick looked around desperately in disbelief. There had to be someone who didn’t feel that way. He turned his gaze to Coach Jones who was nodding along.

“Coach?” Dick asked tentatively.

She smiled. “I actually think that would be a great idea,” she agreed.

The team around him pressed close and cheered.

“Calm down,” she continued, raising her voice. “Dick still needs to agree. But you did show a natural inclination to the position you were in and you obviously know all of our routines from the work you put in over the weekend. If you’re willing to join us, I would be more than happy to let you join the team as more than just a coach. But only if that’s what you want.”

Dick sucked in a sharp breath and looked at the girls around him.

“Please say yes,” Megan begged, hands clasped in front of her. “You’d be wonderful as part of the team.”

“She’s right,” Zatanna agreed.

Dick bit his lip, wanting to find some part of him that hated the idea so he could say no. But if he was being honest with himself, the time he already spent being tossed in the air and in that top position created a craving for the attention that came with it. He loved the dynamic of the team and he wanted to be part of it.

He sighed. “Okay,” he agreed, trying to keep the excitement out of his voice. “I’ll join the team.”

The girls around him cheered, but Coach Jones frowned.

“Dick, you really don’t have to join if you don’t want to,” she emphasized, making everyone fall silent around him.

“No, I do,” he started. “I…I tried to find some part of me that didn’t want this, but this team and everything you do is what I want. It’s the kind of closeness that comes with being part of a team sport and I know that I’ll never find this kind of group in a gymnastics team.”

“Only if you’re sure,” Coach Jones argued.

Dick nodded. “I’m sure.”

The girls around him cheered and pulled him into a large group hug. Dick chuckled and hugged back as many people as he could.

“I believe that brings this practice to a close,” Coach Jones said. “Collect your things and head home. I’ll see you all tomorrow and we’ll work on our routines for the game on Friday and figure out where to place our new team member.”

Dick ducked his head to try and hide his smile. He grabbed his backpack but didn’t make it very far before Megan and Zatanna flanked him.

“I’m so excited that you’re going to be cheering with us,” Megan gushed.

“Slow down, M,” Dick said. “I probably won’t even get to cheer on Friday. I’m just a reserve, remember?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Zatanna said, obviously pleased. “You’re a full-fledged member of the team now. With you on our side, we’re going to kill this season and maybe even make it to nationals this year.”

Dick furrowed his brow. “Have you been to nationals before?” he asked.

“Nope,” Zatanna said easily. “We’ve come close but never made it.”

Dick gaped. “Why are you so sure we’ll make it this year?”

"Because we’ve got you. And that’s something we’ve never had before.”

Dick opened and closed his mouth, searching for something to say but nothing came to mind.

“Dick! Hey, Dick!”

He looked up at the sound of Wally’s voice and found him sprinting over to him, sweaty despite having changed out of his practice clothes.

“Wally hey!” he said with a grin.

“I saw you during practice,” he said, skidding to a stop in front of him.

Dick felt himself flush and was suddenly very aware of the tight spandex shorts he was still wearing. He watched as Zatanna pulled Megan away from them. Connor ambled over to them from the locker room, his duffle slung over his shoulder as they struck up a conversation.

“Yeah they needed someone to fill in since one of the girls had a dermatology appointment or something and I was the only one around who could do it,” he explained.

“You looked really good though,” Wally said, grin never leaving his face.

Dick’s blush deepened, a mixture of embarrassment and pleasure curling in his chest at hearing the words from Wally.

“Thanks, it was kind of fun,” he admitted. “They actually invited me to join the team. As more than a coach anyway.”

“Are you gonna do it?” Wally asked. “You’d be really good.”

“Yeah I actually already agreed,” he said, scratching his cheek. “You’re looking at the newest member of Gotham High’s cheer squad.”

Wally grinned and threw an arm around his shoulders, pulling him against his side. “Congrats, dude! I think this calls for a celebration.”

“Hey!” Zatanna called back to them. “Are you going to stand around all day or are you coming with us to the diner?”

“We’re totally coming with,” Wally called back, pulling Dick forward with the hold around his shoulders.

Dick stumbled with the sudden movement and took careful breaths, trying to calm his raging heartbeat.


	5. Chapter 5

Dick tapped his foot as he waited for his last class before lunch to finish up. Things that morning had been boring and most of the concepts he’d learned in math and science were simple enough to grasp that he got his homework done while his teachers were still going through the lessons.

In his math class, he’d even pulled out his phone and texted Wally since he was in the back corner and out of sight of the teacher. Wally had been complaining about his English class and wanting to get to his Chemistry class that afternoon because they had an experiment planned for the day and he wanted to get into the lab.

Dick glanced at the clock and started to subtly put his things away, loading up his backpack while his teacher finished her lesson. He gripped the strap of his backpack, eyes locked on the clock as the second hand slowly made its way around the clockface.

He was out of his chair the second the bell rang and jumped over the backpacks in the middle of the aisle at the front of his row of desks. He was the first person through the door and darted around the two other people in the hallway ahead of him, making a beeline for the cafeteria where he’d finally get a chance to hang out with Wally and not worry about what he was doing in class.

Dick glanced around the hallway as he approached the double doors and frowned when he didn’t spot the familiar tuft of red hair that often poked above the other heads of the students in the hall.

He grabbed a tray and twirled it in his hands as he entered the lunch line and waited behind the group who’d gotten there ahead of him. He grabbed a slice of pizza and some celery and peanut butter before snatching an apple from the basket and a brownie on a small Styrofoam plate.

He swiped his student ID when he reached the register and barely waited for it to confirm his purchase before he exited the line and headed towards the back corner of the cafeteria where a large round table was nestled.

Dick sat with his back to the wall and took a large bite from a celery stick as he looked over the flow of students coming into the cafeteria. He smiled when he saw Wally push through the doors and crossed a leg underneath himself on the chair to get more comfortable as he waited.

Wally perked up when he made it through the line and headed in his direction, jogging over despite the tray of food in his hand.

“Hey,” he said, dropping into the seat next to him.

“Hey,” Dick said, scooping up some peanut butter on his celery. “What’s up?”

Wally rolled his eyes and took a large bite from his own slice of pizza. “You know what’s up. Boring classes and I’m ready to get to Chemistry.”

“Yeah, yeah, you and your science obsession,” Dick teased.

Two trays snapped down onto the table across from them and they turned to find Megan and Zatanna pulling out the chairs opposite.

“Hey,” Dick said and almost winced at how confused he sounded at seeing them at the same table.

“Hey,” Zatanna said, raising an eyebrow. “You don’t mind that we’re sitting here, do you?”

“Not at all,” Dick said, shaking his head. “Was just surprised, that’s all.”

“Surprised that your friends would want to eat lunch with you?”

“We’ve seen each other at practice so many times already and gone to the diner after practice, why wouldn’t we come and eat lunch, too?” Megan asked, picking up her sandwich.

“Oh no reason, I just wasn’t expecting it,” Dick hurried to say. “I didn’t think you’d want to eat lunch together, that’s all.”

Zatanna rolled her eyes and huffed. “Well looks like we still have a few more things to teach you.”

Another tray settled next to Megan and Dick tried not to stare when Connor sat down next to her. Having a large lunch group had never been something he would’ve considered. Normally it was just him and Wally and if they did have any of their other friends with them it was only one or two at a time and they rarely all sat together.

“Hey Connor,” Wally said, happily chewing his food.

Connor nodded back and started to unwrap his sandwich.

“Megan, Zatanna, what are you guys doing all the way back here? Are you tired of sitting at our own table?”

Megan grinned. “Of course not, we just wanted to sit with the newest member of our cheer team,” she said, waving the newcomer over.

Dick vaguely recognized her when she took the seat next to Zatanna. He’d seen her talking to Roy and remembered him saying something about working with her at archery.

She looked around the table and frowned. “Where is she?” she asked.

“Artemis,” Zatanna said with a smile, “we’ve told you about him. It’s Dick Grayson.”

Artemis blinked and glanced at Dick once before she narrowed her eyes and looked over him more closely. “I thought you said he was just going to help with your tumbling.”

“That’s what was supposed to happen but he’s really good and we thought he would do great as a reserve member of our team,” Megan explained.

Artemis hummed and pulled the foil from her wrap.

Dick glanced at Wally who didn’t look concerned at the newcomers and was most concerned with the food on his plate. His gaze slid to the crowd and he grinned when he spotted Tim picking his way through the tables.

He stood up and waved a hand over his head, catching Tim’s attention quickly. Tim smiled back and hurried over to them, taking one of the two seats next to Wally. He glanced at the group at the table.

“Couldn’t find an empty table?” he asked.

Dick shook his head. “Wally and I actually got here first.”

“Oh,” Tim said, furrowing his brow and took in the newcomers.

“Don’t worry, we’ll introduce you,” Dick said, waving his hand in the air.

“Sure,” Tim said, pulling the lid off his pasta.

“Hey guys.”

Dick blinked, a fry halfway to his mouth and dripping ketchup when Jason materialized next to Tim and took the open chair.

“Where did you come from?” Dick asked.

Jason shrugged and flashed an easy smile at Tim who returned it. “I just got out of the lunch line and saw you back here. I’m shocked you managed to find so many people willing to put up with you.”

“Okay, rude,” Dick scoffed.

Jason rolled his eyes. “What do you expect? For the longest time you only had Wally as your friend and we all know he’s not exactly normal.”

“That’s not true, I had you and Tim,” Dick said.

Jason scoffed. “Yeah right.”

“Don’t be mean, Jason,” Tim said, knocking their shoulders together. “You can claim you weren’t friends with Dick, but we all know how it is.”

“Whatever,” Jason grumbled.

“Jason, hey.”

He glanced over his shoulder and found Roy and someone else standing behind him. “Hey Roy. Have a seat. Our group has apparently grown.”

“I can see that,” Roy said, taking one of the last remaining seats next to Dick while his friend sat between Roy and Artemis. “So, who are all these people?”

Megan and Zatanna shared a look as their conversation with Artemis died.

“This is Megan and Zatanna,” Dick said, pointing across the table to them. “I know them from the cheer team. And that’s Connor who’s on the football team and friends with them. Megan and Zee, this is Roy. You already know Wally, and that’s Tim and Jason. Oh yeah, and then Megan and Zatanna’s friend-“

“Artemis, I know,” Roy said. “We do archery together.”

Dick nodded. “And who’s your friend?”

“This is Kaldur,” Roy said, waving idly at him. “He’s on the swim team, but we have a couple classes together.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” Kaldur said with a nod to them.

Dick nodded back.

“Hey,” Artemis said, pointing at Tim. “You look kind of familiar. Have we met before?”

“I work for the school newspaper and I’m in the yearbook club so you’ve probably seen me around taking pictures of everyone.”

“He handles all the stuff for the sports teams,” Jason supplied. “Takes all the yearbook photos and everything.”

“Oh yeah,” Zatanna nodded. “I remember seeing you hanging around the football games last year.”

“And the swim meets, and the soccer games, and the cross country meets, and the volleyball games, and basketball,” Tim listed with a smile. He shrugged. “I like taking photos, but it would definitely be nice if I had someone else to help with the photography side of things.”

“But your photos are the best we have,” Jason scoffed.

Tim flushed and ducked his head. “Yeah but that doesn’t mean I can’t help someone else learn how to take good pictures so I don’t have to handle the crazy schedule I have now.”

“Wouldn’t be the same,” Jason muttered.

Dick smirked. “That’s only because you want Tim to go to all of your games.”

Jason flushed and glared at him. “You’re delusional.”

“Mm-hm,” Dick hummed, subtly giving Wally a fist bump under the table as they continued to try and get their friends’ heads out of their asses to make them realize how much they liked being around each other.

“Speaking of games,” Megan interrupted. “Dick, you’re going to be at the football game on Friday even if you’re not cheering, right?”

“Yeah, you have to come,” Zatanna said. “You can’t miss out and I know the rest of the team would love to see you there.”

“Of course I’m going to be there,” Dick said. “I’ve got to see all of you in action and in your element when you’ve got an awesome atmosphere and crowd cheering you on.”

“I think they’re going to be paying more attention to the football players than us,” Zatanna said, rolling her eyes.

“Well if I have anything to do about it, their eyes are going to be locked on you and they won’t give a shit about the touchdowns the football team scores,” he said with a huff. “No offense, Connor,” he quickly added.

Connor shrugged. “It’s fine. We don’t have the best track record anyway so if we lose it’s not going to be much of a surprise and if the crowd is watching the cheerleaders, that’ll keep people from leaving at this game.”

Dick winced, remembering the disaster from the year before where their team had started losing so bad that the students walked out of the stadium because they didn’t want to suffer through more than the first quarter.

“You want someone to go with you?” Wally asked, looking at Dick.

“What?”

“You want someone to go with you to the game? If you’re not cheering then you probably don’t want to sit alone,” he said, popping a fry into his mouth.

“Sure, you can come with me,” Dick said. “Just bring enough money to feed your food habit because concessions aren’t going to be cheap. Especially with everything you can eat and I’m not going to pay for you food when you start whining about how hungry you are.”

Wally smirked. “You don’t need to worry about that. I’m going to be plenty prepared for what I want to get.”

“I’ll be there taking pictures, too,” Tim added. “I can swing by and hang out for a few minutes when I’ve got some downtime. Or if you sit at the bottom of the bleachers, I can stand in front of you and talk to you over my shoulder.”

“Yeah definitely,” Dick said. “We can all go out to eat at the diner afterwards, too.”

“I can swing by too,” Jason added like it was obvious. “I know football isn’t my favorite sport but the weather’s supposed to be nice and I’ve got nothing planned for Friday night.”

“Yeah,” Tim agreed, nodding his head. “Catch a seat next to Dick and Wally and I can say hi.”

Jason nodded and ducked his head to whisper something to Tim who grinned and whispered back.

Dick turned to look at Wally who raised an eyebrow at them and nodded in their direction. Dick tilted his head and shrugged, knowing they were both going to have to wait a long time before they finally realized their feelings for each other. Regular friends didn’t act that close in that kind of way. Supporting each other was one thing, but going out of their way to be there was something completely different.

They turned back to the rest of the group at their table and Dick caught Zatanna giving him an interested look, her eyes flitting between him and Wally. He furrowed his brow at her.

_“What?”_ he mouthed.

The corner of her lips ticked up and she shook her head, settling back into her chair and giving Megan her attention as she went on about the newest baking creation she was going to attempt that weekend.

“You better bring me some of that to try,” Artemis broke in, pushing her empty tray away as she crossed her arms on the table.

“Oh, I’ll bring some for everyone!” she said happily. “I love making new cookie recipes.”

“Did I hear something about cookies?” Wally asked, head snapping up.

Dick rolled his eyes and shoved at his shoulder. “Food is the only thing you ever really pick up on.”

“Don’t be like that,” Wally said, throwing his arm around Dick’s shoulder and pulling him against his side. “I know you love me for more than my body.”

“It’s a good thing you’re a runner or you would’ve gained so much weight by now.”

“Can you believe he’s treating me like this?” Wally asked, turning to the rest of the table.

“Your boyfriend’s just telling it like it is, West,” Roy muttered.

“Shut up Roy,” Dick hissed as Wally cleared his throat and pulled his arm from around Dick’s shoulders.

“You only wish you were as good of friends with Jason as we are,” Wally said, trying to regain some of his confidence but it was obvious his tone had fallen flat.

Awkward silence descended on them and Dick fought for something else to say. He couldn’t even distract himself with eating his lunch since he’d already finished it.

“Well,” Zatanna said. “Not to cut this short but I need to run to the library before my next class. “Megan? Artemis? You coming?”

“I’ll go,” Artemis said, pushing her chair back.

“I’ll walk with you, but I need to swing by my locker before I head to my next class. You want to come, Connor?” Megan said, standing up and grabbing her tray.

Connor nodded and walked away with them.

“See you at practice, Dick,” Zatanna called over her shoulder.

Once they left it didn’t do anything to alleviate the awkward atmosphere.

“Oh, I just remembered that I need to get some photos uploaded to the newspaper computer for the edition on Friday,” Tim said, scrambling to push out of his chair.

“I’ll come with you,” Jason said, eagerly following after him as Tim flashed a smile over his shoulder.

“Why would you want to do anything school related during lunch?” Roy asked, slouching down in his chair.

“Believe it or not, my friend, there are some people who care more about their grades and school then you do and actually want to do well,” Kaldur said with a smirk.

“Rude, Kaldur. I’m offended,” he huffed.

“I’m sure your teachers felt the same way by the grades on your last progress report,” he shot back.

Dick snickered, and Wally chuckled.

“Nice one, Kal,” Wally said.

“Yeah, you should hang around more often. We need someone else who can knock Roy down a peg. He’s become immune to our insults,” Dick added.

“Unless it has to do with archery,” Wally said with a roll of his eyes. “Then he gets all bothered by what we say.”

“Hey, don’t make fun of my sport,” he grumbled.

“See?” Dick asked, waving at him. “We didn’t even say anything about it and he’s already defensive.”

Kaldur smiled. “I’ve found that’s nothing new. He’s quite fond of archery and takes very good care of his bow and arrows.”

“Don’t we know,” Wally grumbled.

“You should come to the game with us on Friday,” Dick said. “You’re cool and maybe it’ll get Roy to hang out with us again.”

“I might be able to make it. I have swim practice right before so I may get there after the start of the game.”

Dick waved his hand. “No worries. Show up whenever you can and we’ll save a seat for you.”

The bell rang over their heads and Dick sighed, resigned to a boring afternoon of classes before practice. He could only hope that he’d stay entertained by Wally, but something told him that he wouldn’t get anything more than excited and nerdy updates about Wally’s Chemistry class.

“Later,” Roy said, picking up his tray and walking to the return.

“I’ll see you soon,” Kaldur said, giving them both a nod before he followed Roy.

“Can you believe him?” Wally scoffed as he and Dick gathered up their food trays and followed the rush to the tray return. “We’re going in the same direction and he can’t wait five minutes to walk with us.”

Dick rolled his eyes. “You know how he is. Can’t be seen hanging out with anyone younger or less cool than him.”

“Well he sat with us for thirty minutes, I think it’s too late for that.”

Dick grinned and dumped the trash from his tray before setting it on the conveyor belt. “You want to follow him around whenever we can during passing periods so he can’t act all cool around girls?”

“You know it,” he agreed, throwing his arm around Dick’s shoulders.


	6. Chapter 6

“So…who do you think is going to win?” Wally asked as they approached the line for the concessions’ stand.

Dick shrugged. “I don’t know. Isn’t this team supposed to be our biggest rival and one we’ve never been able to beat before?”

Wally hummed and looked over the menu, pulling his wallet from his back pocket to look over how much he could afford. “I don’t think so. I think that’s the team from upstate who was able to get a professional coach or something. I think this one we’ve both beaten and lost to in the past, but I don’t pay that much attention to our football team.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Dick said with a smile. “We all know that your attention is only on running.”

Wally punched him in the arm in retaliation, but he didn’t deny Dick’s words.

“Next!” the woman behind the register called.

Wally stepped up and started rattling off his order while Dick waited patiently behind him, watching the workers in their element. The cashier was experienced and typed in the order as fast as Wally said it, shouting instructions over her shoulder to the few students helping out.

She held out her hand for Wally’s money and snatched it from his fingers, slipping it into the register and pulling his miniscule amount of change from the drawer to dump back in his hand. Wally struggled not to drop the coins as he slid the bills in the flap of his wallet and by the time it was securely in his pocket, he had a foil-wrapped hotdog, a bag of popcorn, and a soda shoved into his hands.

They wobbled precariously for a minute and Dick bit his lip, waiting for the soda to fall and spill all over Wally’s yellow shoes, but he got a secure grip on it and moved to the side, taking a long drink from the straw.

“What can I get you?” the woman asked, turning her attention to Dick.

“Just a bottle of water for me,” he said, passing her a couple of dollar bills.

She nodded and slid them into the register, giving Dick a quarter back and a dripping bottle of water.

“Thanks,” he said even though her attention was already on the person behind him.

“That’s it?” Wally asked as he wiped the condensation from the bottle on his shorts.

“Yeah,” Dick said, glancing up at him. “Unlike you, I don’t have four stomachs and already ate dinner because Alfred wouldn’t budge on it.”

“I guess you can’t really say no to Alfred. You could’ve gotten some candy though.”

Dick huffed as they climbed up the short flight of steps to the bleachers next to the football field. “You’re only saying that because you would’ve eaten half the box. You’re just going to have to buy your own later.”

“Fine,” Wally pretended to grumble, and they settled in the front row of the bleachers, surprisingly finding empty seats at a home game.

Most of the rows behind them were already filled with students, but no one had claimed the first row.

Dick spotted Megan and Zatanna where they were stretching and warming up on the cheer mats. He waved a hand over his head and they waved back excitedly, Megan jumping up and down from her spot among the rest of the cheer team.

The girls around them waved as well, grins bright as they laughed at Megan’s excitement.

“Dude, I can’t believe you’re like best friends with the whole cheer team,” Wally said around a mouthful of popcorn.

Dick rolled his eyes. “It’s not that impressive, Walls. I help coach them. I’d hope they’d at least like me a little bit since we have to see each other practically every day after school.”

Coach Jones moved into view, looking pleased at seeing him and waved him over.

“I’ll be right back, I guess,” Dick said, pushing himself up off the bench.

Wally hummed around his mouthful of food, washing it down with a slurp of soda. Dick chuckled and crossed his arms on the railing.

“Hey Coach, what’s up?” he asked with a grin.

“I’m glad you’re here tonight. I know I didn’t ask you to come and the girls were happy to see you here, but would you mind coming down here during the game to watch their form and give feedback? I think it would really help them keep on track and fix anything that could possibly cause an injury,” she said, not sounding the least bit apologetic.

Dick hesitated in answering and bit his lip. He glanced over his shoulder at Wally who was still seated on the bench. Wally paused in digging around the bag of popcorn and raised an eyebrow at him. He gestured for him to go back over and Dick turned back to Coach Jones.

“Just give me one minute,” he said.

“Sure,” Coach Jones said.

Dick sighed and sidled back over to Wally.

“What’s up?” Wally asked, eyeing him up and down.

Dick shifted. “Look dude, I’m sorry about this, but Coach Jones wants me to watch the cheerleaders during the game and help correct their form and give feedback.”

“Dude, go,” Wally said, nearly pushing him back on his heels.

“We said we were going to hang out together tonight though, and I don’t want to leave you hanging or anything.”

Wally huffed and rolled his eyes. “It’s seriously fine, dude. This is something you kind of have to do considering you’re part of the cheer team. And it’s really not that big of a deal. Besides, I think I see Roy and Jason over by the gate. They can keep me company while you go off and do your fancy cheerleading thing.”

Dick followed his gaze and spotted Roy’s red hair over the crowd. He nodded and was about to ask Wally if he was sure one last time when he kicked him towards the stairs. Dick chuckled and skipped down the steps, biting his lip despite the grin that wanted to pull his lips wide.

“Glad you could join us,” Coach Jones said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Of course,” Dick said. “But so we can avoid this in the future, do you just want me to come to the games so I can help out or step in if it’s needed?”

She pursed her lips, trying not to show how she pleased she was and nodded. “I think that would be the best option. It would keep us all on track and hopefully avoid injury. And if anyone were to get injured during the game, you’d be able to step in and help through the rest of the game.”

“Sure, sure,” Dick agreed, nodding. “I’ll need a uniform.”

“Don’t worry,” she said with a smile. “We can get you fitted for a uniform on Monday during practice. I have several spares, so we just need to find your size. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to talk to the girls before we get started.”

Dick nodded and crossed his arms, leaning against the fence as he watched the cheerleaders talk with their coach before the game started.

“Hey.”

Dick looked up and found Tim walking towards him, one hand raised in greeting as he kept a hand on the camera hanging around his neck.

“Hey, Tim!”

“What are you doing down here? Aren’t you supposed to be up in the bleachers with Wally watching the game?”

He turned his attention back to the field and raised his camera, peering through the viewfinder to get a better look of the players on the field going through warmups.

“Coach Jones wanted me to watch the team during the game. Wally was cool with me coming down since Roy and Jason showed up.”

Tim nodded and lowered his camera, turning to look at the bleachers. He rose up on his tiptoes to look over the edge and grinned and waved.

“Hey Tim,” Jason said, appearing at the railing of the bleachers.

“Hey Jason,” Tim said, looking up at him. “Glad to see you made it to the game.”

Jason shrugged. “Yeah, it didn’t seem so bad. Thought it might be fun.”

Dick rolled his eyes and turned away, shuffling closer to the edge of the blue mats the cheerleaders had on hand.

“They’re quite the pair, aren’t they?” Zatanna asked, appearing at his side.

Dick followed her gaze to Jason and Tim who were eagerly chatting without a care in the world. He snorted and gave Zatanna a sly smile.

“I think that’s a bit of an understatement. They’ve been into each other for basically forever. We all keep trying to drop hints that they should finally confess, but they always go unheard. It’s kind of sad. They’re spending so much time pining when they could be so much happier dating each other.”

Zatanna chuckled. “Maybe Megan and I can do something to help break their bubble of obliviousness. But I guess it’s just like you and Wally, huh?”

Dick frowned and stared at Zatanna who raised an eyebrow.

“What?” she asked.

“What what?” Dick questioned. “What do you mean like me and Wally?”

“I mean the fact that you two are just as oblivious as Tim and Jason.”

Dick opened and closed his mouth several times, trying to make sense of what Zatanna had just told him. That she thought him and Wally were dating. Maybe not even that far, that she thought him and Wally were interested in dating. That she thought he found Wally cute and was obsessed with the freckles on his nose and cheeks and his stupidly unruly red hair and the fact that he loved the color yellow and nothing could pull him away from the yellow running shoes he always wore for cross country even if there were “cooler” and “sleeker” shoes that the big name, elite runners wore and endorsed.

Dick froze, a dawning horror coming over him. He swallowed and forced himself to meet Zatanna’s gaze.

“We’re not like Tim and Jason,” he croaked, trying to wish it into being that he didn’t suddenly realize his best friend was kind of attractive and adorable. “We don’t like each other like that, we’re just good friends.”

Zatanna pursed her lips. “Now you’re really emulating Jason and Tim,” she huffed. “I see the way you two look at each other. You might be oblivious to it, and I don’t mean to discount your friendship at all, but I’m pretty sure there’s some underlying attraction under the surface. You just might not have noticed since you’ve been friends for so long and it developed naturally.”

Dick laughed, and it sounded unnerved and uncertain to his ears. “You’re starting to sound like a therapist,” he squeaked.

Zatanna shrugged. “Maybe, but I kind of have to be if you’re going to be as dense as they are.”

“Look, I really don’t think-“

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” the announcer started, cheery voice echoing over the speakers as the crowd started to settle and the football players cleared from the field.

Dick’s mouth clamped shut and Zatanna sighed, wandering away to join the other cheerleaders. Dick didn’t even hear the rest of the announcements of the players and the game. He glanced over his shoulder and bit his thumbnail, quickly looking away when he caught any little glimpse of Wally.

“Are you okay, Dick?”

He jumped and whirled around to find Tim standing next to him. His eyebrows were drawn down in concern and he looked him up and down.

“Nothing’s wrong is it?”

Dick forced a smile. “No, of course not!” he said, voice too high.

Tim’s frown deepened. “Are you sure? Because you look worried about something. It’s not the game is it? Are you going to have to cheer?”

Dick frantically shook his head, realizing too late that he was shaking it too long before he slowed and cleared his throat, shifting from foot to foot. “I’m really fine, I promise.”

“Do you need a nurse? Are you sick?”

“Don’t you have pictures to take?” Dick pleaded.

Tim sighed. “Fine, if you don’t want to tell me what’s wrong, I’m sure Wally will have no trouble listening to you,” he grumbled, gripping his camera as he started down the track to get a better spot for pictures of the game.

Dick crossed his arms and bit his lip, eyes focused on the cheerleaders as they took scattered positions on the mats, readying their pompoms.

They turned to face the flag waving at the edge of the stadium and Dick realized too late that the national anthem was playing over the speakers. He carefully placed his hand over his heart and felt his face heat up. He let out a long breath as the familiar song played and tried to get his focus in order.

Once the song ended, the audience cheered and clapped, and the players took their spots on the field. The cheerleaders spread out across the mats, shouting various encouragements as they waved their pompoms and smiled at the crowd. Some of them even did backhand springs or cartwheels, but they didn’t make any move to do anything more elaborate since the game was just getting started.

Dick glanced over his shoulder at Wally who paused his chewing when their gazes met. He waved cheerfully back at him and shoved a handful of popcorn into his mouth before he jumped into a conversation Roy and Jason were having next to him.

Dick raised his hand even though Wally probably missed it and turned his attention back to the cheerleaders in front of him. He stuck his thumbnail between his teeth and started chewing on it, absentmindedly assessing the form and movements of the cheerleaders.

~~

Dick was exhausted by the end of the game and he did nothing more than stand in one place and offer a few comments to the team and Coach Jones. They tried to get him to demonstrate when their form needed fixing, but he knew he wasn’t in the right state of mind to try and perform any complex acrobatic moves without risk of falling on his face for possibly breaking his neck.

Tim had been almost relentless with the concerned looks he shot in his direction whenever he was nearby taking pictures and half-time was brutal when he had to suffer through a conversation with Wally and Jason and pretend like he hadn’t realized something that could ruin one of the best friendships he’d ever had.

He was comforted that Zatanna looked guilty for dropping something on him so suddenly and he really wished if it was going to happen regardless, that it could’ve happened when he had the chance to go home and hide himself in the Manor.

“You feel like going to the diner?” Wally asked when Dick tiredly climbed the steps back up to the stands as the cheerleaders packed their bags and the football team stretched now that the game was over. “Megan said that she was going to invite Connor and some of their other friends and it sounded pretty fun.”

“I don’t think so,” Dick sighed. “I’m really tired and kind of just want to go home.”

Wally frowned and looked him over. “You’re not sick, are you? You don’t really look too good now that I’m thinking about it.”

Dick sighed and closed his eyes, suddenly realizing one of the worst illnesses in the world was falling in love.


	7. Chapter 7

Dick closed his eyes and sighed when a hand grabbed his arm.

“Dick, I’m sorry,” Zatanna said behind him, voice tight and pleading.

He let out a long breath and hung his head for a moment before dutifully turning to face her. She searched his eyes, waiting for what he was going to say.

“Look, I know I shouldn’t have dropped all of that on you-”

Dick shook his head, stopping her apology. “I know what you’re trying to do, but I don’t really want to talk about this. Not right now anyway. So, can we just go to practice and worry about this later? Or not?”

Zatanna nodded, letting his arm go. “I can definitely respect that. Especially since I’m the one that caused all of this. We’re good then?” she asked, biting her lip.

Dick smiled. “Yeah, we’re good.” He held out his fist which Zatanna bumped.

“Practice?”

Dick nodded and turned, feeling something slam into his side, wetness soaking through his shirt before something splashed over his shoes.

“Shit, man, I’m really sorry about that. I totally didn’t see you there.”

Dick looked down at his soda covered shirt and winced at the sticky feeling that was starting to coat his stomach. He glanced at the floor and was glad most of the spill from the cup had missed his shoes.

He looked at the boy in front of him who looked incredibly apologetic.

Dick smiled. “Hey, it was an accident. No worries, okay?”

“I really wish there was something I could do to make it up to you, but I’m guessing there’s…not,” he sighed, scratching the side of his neck.

Dick chuckled. “At the end of the school day? Probably not, but thanks for the offer. I need to get going, but if I see you again, hopefully we can avoid any further soda spills.”

The other boy grinned. “You got it.” He bent and picked up the empty Styrofoam cup. “And if I do see you around, I just might have to buy you a soda to make up for this.”

“Well if you do, I definitely wouldn’t say no,” Dick said with a smile.

The boy nodded, sparing a quick glance at Zatanna before he walked away. Dick sighed once he was out of earshot.

“Great, now what am I going to do about this. I didn’t bring a spare shirt,” he grumbled.

“I think one of the other girls might have a spare you could borrow,” Zatanna offered. “Let’s get to the locker rooms and I can see what I can scrounge up.”

“You’re a lifesaver,” Dick breathed.

She laughed. “It’s the least I can do.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the main hall of the school towards the athletic wing. “You have some shorts you can change into?”

“Yeah, I figured jeans would be the last thing I wanted to practice in.”

She nodded. “Wait right here. I’ll be back in a second,” she said, placing him next to the door before she hurried inside.

Dick fiddled with his shirt as he waited. He’d have to wipe himself down with a wet paper towel when he changed. Being sticky the rest of the afternoon was not going to happen.

“I’m really sorry, Dick,” Zatanna said, pushing back out of the locker room. “But this was the only thing we had between us.” She sighed and held up a black crop top.

Dick shrugged and snatched it from her grip. “It’s really no big deal. I’ve been in tight spandex in front of hundreds of strangers before. A crop top isn’t going to send me running.”

“Still…”

Dick smiled. “I’m just glad to have something to change into. Speaking of which, I’m going to need to hurry. If you beat me down to the field, let Coach know I’m coming.”

“Of course,” she said. “And that’s only if I can beat you down there. I have to get changed too.”

Dick smiled and they parted ways, going through the locker room doors next to each other. He skirted around a couple of football players and cross-country runners that were headed out. He swung around the corner towards the stalls and nearly collided with a swimmer rushing towards the door that led to the pool.

“Sorry,” Dick mumbled, letting him pass. He dropped his backpack in front of a sink and draped the shirt over top of it before pulling his own shirt over his head. He wet one of the paper towels and wiped off the sugar that got through his shirt.

He slipped into one of the changing stalls as the last voices faded away, the other athletes leaving the locker room behind. Dick slipped his arms through the sleeves of the crop top and shoved his head through the opening. He kicked off his shoes and yanked his backpack open, digging out the spandex shorts he’d packed that morning and shimmying into them until the waistband settled above his hips.

He quickly adjusted the elastic of the shorts around the middle of his thighs and absently tugged at the edge of the top before he remembered it wasn’t coming down any farther. He shoved his clothes back in his bag and forced his feet back into his shoes before he remembered the cheer shoes he’d bought over the weekend.

“Shit,” he huffed under his breath, fishing around for the shoes that were pushed to the bottom of his bag. He kicked off his shoes and slipped his feet into them, hesitating before he tied the laces and zipped his bag shut, swinging it over his shoulder.

The slide of the metal lock was loud in the silence, and he pulled the door open, pausing in front of the mirror to look over his clothes. He shrugged and gave himself a nod. A fitted tank would’ve been better than a flowy crop top, but if it really got in the way he could always take it off. He glanced at the clock and winced before sprinting from the locker room, his bag bumping against his lower back.

The halls were empty as he made a beeline for the doors leading towards the football field. He slammed the bar down, throwing the door open. He squinted against the sunlight and winced, but that didn’t slow him as he bolted down the sidewalk towards the football field.

Dick slowed as he slipped through the gate and jogged over to the rest of the cheerleaders. Half of them stopped what they were doing and let out low wolf-whistles. He rolled his eyes and tried to wave them off as he dumped his bag next to the fence.

“Look at you,” Zatanna said. “I guess I shouldn’t have worried about you being uncomfortable in a crop top. You’re rocking it.”

“At this rate, Grayson’s going to be stealing all the cute boys,” Scarlet added.

Dick flushed and cleared his throat. “I really don’t think that’s anything you have to worry about.”

“Maybe not yet, but if we get you in a cheer skirt, I think that might be another story entirely,” Zatanna said with a smirk.

“Alright, alright,” Coach Jones said, pulling their attention away from Dick. “We still have work we need to get done, so let’s focus on practice and we can worry about Dick’s uniform later. I want you all to get warmed up and stretch so we can run through our formations for the next game.”

Dick grinned and hopped onto the mat, finding a spot for himself where he could stretch and center himself before the practice ahead.

~~

Wally sighed as he rounded the bend behind the school. The sun was hot on his back, but he still felt at ease despite it all. His legs were light even if he was pushing himself to be faster. He was doing his favorite thing in the whole world and couldn’t imagine anywhere sweeter to be.

He was ahead of the pack and had no intentions of slowing down. He passed the edge of the bleachers and hopped onto the sidewalk that curved around the football field. He glanced at where the cheerleaders were practicing, knowing he’d find Dick enjoying his own time with his team.

They widened when he spotted Dick balancing on one foot, his shoe securely held by two bases, sunlight glinting of his smile. But that wasn’t what shocked him. He’d seen Dick in spandex and leotards before, but the tight shorts and crop top was completely new.

Wally grunted when the toe of his shoe caught the back of his heel and sent him tumbling towards the pavement. He threw out his hands to stop his fall and winced when they scraped across the rough surface and he rolled over once, coming to settle on his side.

“KF!”

He struggled to get his elbow underneath him and raised his palm to inspect the bleeding and broken skin.

“Hey, Wally, you okay man?” one of his teammates huffed, coming up behind him. “The heat didn’t get to you, did it?”

“Yeah, KF what happened? You didn’t twist your ankle, did you?”

“You’ve been eating enough? And drinking water?” their team captain demanded, joining the group.

Wally looked up at their concerned faces and shook his head. “I’ve been eating plenty and all of you know how much water I drink, so it’s not that. It was…it was just…”

“Wally! Are you okay?”

He glanced up and found Dick sprinting towards him, slowing as he approached. Megan and Zatanna followed him with their coach bringing up the rear. Wally’s teammates fell silent behind him.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just had a bit of a fall,” he said, laughing weakly.

“Your head is bleeding,” Dick said.

“Oh,” Wally said, ducking his head. He pressed his fingers to his forehead, feeling something wet and sticky over his eyebrow.

“Let me see,” Coach Jones said, guiding Dick out of the way.

Wally’s eyes followed him, taking in his worried expression and how his white teeth sank into his bottom lip. His cheeks were flushed slightly and sweat had plastered his hair to his temples.

Coach Jones’ face filled his vision as she prodded his forehead. Wally looked past her, unable to let Dick out of sight.

“Holy shit, he’s kind of hot,” one of his teammates whispered behind him.

Wally felt himself flush, his eyes still on Dick who hadn’t heard the comment if his lack of a reaction was anything to go by. He didn’t want to agree with his team, but he couldn’t deny that a similar realization had brought his brain to a screeching halt. And his feet, too.

“It’s a shallow cut,” Coach Jones said. “Head wounds always tend to bleed. Let’s get you back to your coach so you can get cleaned up.”

Wally nodded and hands wrapped around his arms, helping him to his feet. They started to pull him away when Dick stepped forward.

“KF?” he asked.

Wally did his best to smile and put Dick at ease. “I’ll be fine. It’ll take more than a little tumble to bring me down, don’t you worry. I’m not the Wall-man for nothing.”

Wally’s teammates groaned behind him, but it was all worth it for Dick’s features to loosen a fraction of an inch and a quiet chuckle to slip out between his lips.

“I want you three to go back to the team and no practicing until I get back. I don’t need any of you getting injured. Understand?” Coach Jones said, voice stern.

“Of course, Coach,” Zatanna said, taking charge of the situation.

Wally glanced over his shoulder as he was pulled away and found Zatanna and Megan tugging at Dick’s arms, trying to pull him back towards the team.

“He’ll be fine, Dick,” Megan said. “You can see him after practice.”

“Yeah, and just like we told you, you’re going to steal all the boys from the rest of us considering how the cross-country team was looking at you.”

Wally smiled back at Dick, hoping to ease his worry as he nodded along to what his friends were saying. He tried ignoring the angry curl of his gut, and instead focused his energy on reassuring Dick just a little more, but it was another minute before Dick could be pulled from his spot.

He wasn’t going to think about how the rest of the team was staring at Dick in his tight shorts and the crop top he got from who knows where. He didn’t want them staring at Dick and making comments about him like that. He didn’t want people going after Dick.

And he certainly didn’t want to try and figure out why he felt like that.

As they turned the corner towards the side of the school, their coach jogged towards them.

“I was about to come looking for you. By your last paces, you should’ve come past a couple minutes ago. What happened?” he asked, noticing how everyone was keeping close to Wally.

“He tripped and fell,” Coach Jones said. “I wanted to make sure he made it back here to you alright.”

“Thanks Amanda,” Coach Walker said. “I’ll take it from here. You should get back to your own team.”

She nodded and spun around, making her way back towards the football field.

“The rest of you boys get back to your last lap and get changed when you’re done. I’ll take things from here,” their coach said.

They nodded and took off, disappearing within seconds.

“Come on West,” he sighed. “I’ve got some bandages in my office.”

Wally nodded and followed Coach Walker back into the building towards the athletic offices. He pushed his door open and tossed his clipboard onto the desk before grabbing a battered first aid kid from the cabinet.

“Sit down West,” he ordered.

Wally eased himself down into the chair. Glad to be off his feet for once. He could already feel the ache that was settling into his bones and would no doubt be covered in bruises by the next day. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes, hissing as his coach pressed a wipe to the cut over his eyebrow, clearing the blood away.

“Looks like you got lucky, kid. Could’ve been a hell of a lot worse, but I guess you’ve always had luck on your side. You won’t even need a bandage once we get all the blood cleared away. Here,” he said, taking Wally’s hand to press against a square of gauze over his eyebrow, “hold that in place.”

Wally’s free hand was taken while he kept pressure on the cut and winced when the abrasions on his hand were wiped clean before he was made to switch hands and repeat the process.

“Any other injuries I should know about?” he asked after tossing the last wipe in the garbage. “Twisted ankle? Trouble walking? Dizziness or nausea?”

“Nope,” Wally said, sitting up. “I feel fine.”

“Good. I just need to fill out an incident report really quick and you’ll be good to go.”

Wally sagged back into his chair, resolved to sitting through a few moments of annoying questions before he was free to go.

~~

Wally sighed as he pushed through the locker room door. He heard a booming laugh that could only come from his team captain.

“I’m serious you guys,” Muller said. “Dick Grayson looked hot. You had to have noticed him today? Like, I didn’t realize how good he looked until I saw him sprinting across the football field in those shorts.”

Wally froze, swallowing harshly.

“I know,” Spenson agreed. “I wouldn’t mind taking him out on a date. I’ve seen him at the diner a couple times, so I know he likes it there.”

“I _definitely_ wouldn’t mind having the cheerleaders at our meets if we got to see them in their tight uniforms,” Walt added, voice wistful. “Do you think Dick is going to wear the skirts like the girls?”

“Doubt it,” Muller snorted. “Don’t male cheerleaders wear pants or whatever?”

Wally felt himself flush, the anger from earlier curling in his gut at the thought of the rest of the team sizing up his best friend like that. He let out a shaky breath and swung around the corner.

“KF, you finally made it back!” their captain greeted, catching sight of him. “You doing okay?”

“Oh, um yeah. It was just a cut over my eyebrow. Nothing too serious,” he said, waving at his forehead.

“Try not to be so clumsy next time,” Muller said, giving him a pat on the shoulder as he walked past, making for the exit to the locker room.

“I’m not clumsy,” he grumbled.

The rest of the team chuckled and shouldered their bags, having already finished changing. They said their goodbyes to Wally as they passed, giving him pats on the shoulder before resuming their conversations about Dick.

Once he was alone again, Wally’s shoulders sagged, and he shuffled over to his locker. He dropped down onto the wooden bench, head hanging between his shoulders. His back hit the lockers with a low ring and his head rolled back against the locker. He ignored the sting it caused at the back of his scalp.

He hated how his team was talking about asking Dick out on a date or seeing him in a skirt. Because Wally couldn’t deny he was hot in the spandex shorts and the crop top. If he saw him in a skirt, he might hurt himself worse than just tripping over his own two feet.

Dick was his best friend and he was starting to move into creepy territory by thinking about him like this. Dick would never forgive him for that kind of thing. He didn’t even want to know what he would say. Although, he could imagine it going along the lines of him never wanting to see him again, destroying the best friendship he’d ever had in his life.

Wally sighed. He’d just have to ignore it. It didn’t matter how slim Dick’s waist was or muscular his arms and thighs were. Or if his hair framed his face in just the right way that made the sunlight catch on his blue eyes and make them sparkle like the sun on the ocean.

Wally groaned and pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes. He couldn’t let himself get caught up in those kinds of thoughts. He had to put it all out of his mind. He couldn’t be crushing on his best friend. He just…he couldn’t. He couldn’t make it weird.

Dick was his best friend and he was going to make sure he didn’t do anything to drive him away. He wasn’t going to lose him over this. He wouldn’t let himself.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was supposed to be posted a week ago, but because I was insanely sick for the past week I've only had the energy to do it now that I'm finally coming out of it. 
> 
> As always, I love this fic and am stoked to get to share an update with y'all so please enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Dick bit his lip as he paced in front of the school. He hadn’t bothered changing out of the shorts and crop top he wore for practice, not in the mood to put his sticky, soda-covered clothes back on.

The rest of the cross-country team had already walked out of the building, some of them being friendlier than usual, but Dick was more concerned with Wally. He knew his fall hadn’t been a bad one and he’d been walking alright, but Dick knew if he got injured badly enough that he was out for the season or even just a couple of practices, it would be enough to send his mood spiraling.

“Dick, I’m sure he’s okay,” Megan said, trying to catch his arm as he carefully kept out of reach.

“But what if he’s not?” he huffed, running a hand through his hair.

“He’s fine, Dick,” Zatanna said with a roll of her eyes. “He just had a cut over his eyebrow and maybe a skinned knee. It’s nothing that won’t heal in a matter of days.”

“I guess…” Dick said. “But what if-”

“No, what ifs!” Zatanna cried. “You’re not doing yourself any good imagining the worst-case scenario and it’s ridiculous you’d think he’d have internal bleeding from a little fumble.”

“I don’t think he’s got internal bleeding,” he muttered even as his brain latched onto the idea.

“What’s up with him?” Connor asked, wandering up to their group.

Megan grinned and wrapped her arms around Connor’s arm, watching Dick with soft eyes.

“Dick thinks Wally’s terminally ill because he fell at practice,” Zatanna bit out, crossing her arms.

Connor frowned. “Oh yeah, I think I saw that. He was fine though, right?”

“He was completely fine,” Zatanna agreed. “But for some reason Dick can’t wrap his head around that even though we keep telling him there’s nothing to worry about.”

“But what if-” Dick started, whirling around to face her.

“No!” Zatanna shouted, pointing a finger at him.

“Is everything alright?”

Dick’s shoulders slumped and he pouted, glancing over his shoulder to find Kaldur behind him.

“Don’t even ask,” Zatanna threatened.

“I don’t think I need to, it would be pretty difficult to not understand Dick’s concerned for his boyfriend when you’re not being subtle in your argument,” Kaldur said with a smile. “But don’t worry, my friend. He will be fine.”

Misery curled in Dick’s stomach and he wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.

“Wally’s not my boyfriend,” he sighed, ignoring how he sounded more miserable than he should. They were best friends. That was all he needed. He shouldn’t be allowed to be bitter about something he’d never have.

He ducked his head, missing the confused look Kaldur gave Zatanna who shook her head.

Zatanna sighed, her irritation draining away. “Look, Dick…”

He shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I just…you know what? Never mind.”

The door opened behind him and Dick whirled around, eyes hopeful. Relief washed through him as Wally stepped through the double doors.

“Wally,” he cried, rushing over to him. “Are you okay?” he asked, gripping his face between his palms to turn his head from side to side to get a better look at the cut on his eyebrow. “You’re good to keep running, right?”

Wally cleared his throat and stepped back out of Dick’s reach. He scratched the back of his head and Dick watched his cheeks turn a light shade of pink.

“I’m fine, Dick. Just a few scrapes and cuts. There’s nothing that’s going to keep me out of practice or our upcoming meet. I just need to be more careful.”

Dick sighed and smiled, the tension and worry that had been holding his body hostage finally draining away. “Good, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Wally nodded, his hand falling back to his side.

“Well now that we’ve got proof you’re not getting whisked away to the hospital, how do all of us feel about going to the diner for a snack?” Zatanna asked.

Dick nodded at her and turned to say something to Wally when he caught the shake of his head.

“I think I’m just going to head home today. Thanks though,” he said, taking a few steps to the side.

Dick’s good mood soured slightly that Wally was leaving so soon.

“I’ll talk to you later. Okay, Dick?” he said, walking a few steps backwards before he turned on his heel and left them behind.

Dick frowned. “Maybe something is still wrong with him,” he muttered. “He never says no to food. Maybe I should go check on him and make sure he gets home okay.”

“He’s fine, Dick,” Zatanna huffed, grabbing his arm. “And you’re not going to do yourself any good by chasing him down.

“She’s right, Dick,” Megan agreed. “I’m sure he’ll be back to his usual self tomorrow at school. He’s probably just embarrassed and frustrated at having fallen at practice. Didn’t you say he was ahead of the rest of the team? He was probably hoping to beat them.”

Dick shook his head, trying to put what he was feeling into words. He _knew_ Wally. And this kind of behavior was so far off from how he usually was.

“Come on, I’m sure a snack from the diner will make you feel better,” Zatanna sang.

Dick shook his head. “I don’t think so. Not today.”

Zatanna huffed.

“I’m just gonna call Alfred and have him take me home. I’ll see all of you tomorrow, okay?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Zatanna’s expression softened and she patted him on the shoulder. Megan waved and Kaldur and Connor nodded before they walked off.

Dick pulled out his phone and shuffled over to the bench in front of the school. He rang the house phone, biting his lip as he waited for it to be picked up.

“Wayne residence,” Alfred answered politely.

“Hey Al. It’s me, Dick,” he said.

“Master Dick, what can I do for you?”

“Can you come get me from school?”

“Is everything all right?” Alfred asked, concerned.

“Yeah, I’m fine, I just…I just want to come home,” he murmured.

“Very well. I’ll be around with the car soon.”

“Thanks, Al,” Dick said and ended the call. He shoved his phone into his pocket and buried his face in his hands, his leg jiggling up and down on the sidewalk.

He was worried about Wally and he felt terrible and awful like he could’ve done something to help him. Avoiding a physical injury was a miracle and Dick could only hope it would stay that way. Maybe he could make Wally feel better if he took him out for pizza after his first meet of the year.

But knowing Barry and Iris, they’d do the same thing and it wouldn’t matter what he wanted to do…

“Master Dick?”

Dick sighed and dropped his hands, looking up at Alfred who was standing in front of him.

“Are you ready to return home?” he asked, gesturing to the car.

Dick nodded and stood from the bench, shuffling over to the waiting car. He climbed into the back, letting Alfred shut the door behind him before he slid into the front seat and pulled away from the curb.

Dick stared out the window, glad for the momentary silence as they drove through the streets of Gotham.

He sighed and rested his head against the glass, letting his eyes slide shut. He could practically feel Alfred’s gaze on him through the rearview mirror and only hoped that he wasn’t so concerned he wasn’t paying attention to the other cars around them.

“Why don’t you go and get changed and meet me back in the kitchen?” Alfred asked, breaking the silence.

Dick blinked his eyes open and found they were already crawling up the drive to the house.

“Why?” he mumbled.

“Trust me, Master Dick,” Alfred said, slowing to a stop in the garage.

Dick hummed and shoved the door of the car open. He crawled out and shut it behind him before shuffling through the door into the house.

He navigated the house by memory until he reached his room and dumped his backpack on the floor, barely remembering to pull his dirty clothes free to toss in the hamper. He grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a tee to replace his sweaty cheer clothes.

Dick sighed, feeling a bit better once he was changed. There was more pep to his step as he jogged down the stairs and pushed through the door to the kitchen, but his swirling thoughts about Wally still weighed down his shoulders.

“You’re already looking much better,” Alfred said, placing a plate of cookies on the table. “Now, I think it’s time for a snack.”

Dick slid into one of the chairs, pulling his legs underneath himself to sit cross-legged as Alfred took the seat across from him.

“Would you care to tell me what has you so down, Master Dick?” Alfred asked, giving him a moment to enjoy the warm cookies.

Dick swallowed and stared at the food in his hand. “It’s Wally.”

“Is something wrong with him? The two of you never fight so I can’t imagine it’s something like that.”

Dick shook his head. “Not really. I mean, he fell at practice and got a little scraped up, but he’s okay. He didn’t get seriously injured. But he wasn’t really acting like he usually does and I’m worried about him. I mean, he didn’t even want to go to the diner for a snack! And food is always what’s on his mind.”

Alfred nodded and smiled. “Well, I think with such a kind friend as you looking after him, he’ll be just fine.”

Dick nodded and swiped another cookie from the plate, taking a large bite from it. He chewed slowly, the sugar helping lift his mood a little more.

“You know what I think, Master Dick?” Alfred asked.

Dick raised his head and swallowed. “What?” he asked.

“I think you should meet me in the car because there’s somewhere we should go.”

Dick frowned. “But what do we have to do? There’s not an event for Bruce’s work tonight and I just got home from school.”

“Trust me, Master Dick. I think there’s one other place where you should be.”

“Okay,” he said, not sounding convinced. He shoved the rest of his cookie into his mouth and stood from his chair. He swiped two more cookies and padded out of the kitchen.

He stopped in the foyer and grabbed a pair of shoes that hadn’t made it back to his room, shoving his feet into them as he munched on one of the cookies.

Dick pulled open the front door and jogged down the steps turning towards the garage, the door still open from when they’d arrived home.

He didn’t crawl into the back seat of the car, choosing to lean against the trunk as he waited for Alfred to exit the house.

“Go on and get into the back. We’re going for a little bit of a drive,” Alfred said, unlocking the car.

Dick nodded and crawled into the back, putting his seatbelt securely in place as Alfred slid into the front seat and started the car. He backed out of the garage and closed the door, turning to face the gates as they creaked open for them.

Dick stared out the window as they navigated the streets, not giving much thought as to where they were going until he started to recognize the familiar streets that led to the less affluent suburbs on the outskirts of Gotham’s main city.

“Um, Alfred?” Dick asked.

“What is it, Master Dick?” Alfred asked.

“Where exactly is it you’re taking me?” he asked.

“I’m taking you where I think you need to be,” Alfred answered cryptically.

Dick froze as Alfred turned down the next street.

“Alfred are you taking me to Wally’s house?” he cried, sitting forward.

“Of course, Master Dick. Where else would I be taking you?” he chided, slowing the car to a stop at the curb in front of Wally’s house.

“But Wally doesn’t want to see me,” Dick muttered, pressing himself back against the seat as Alfred walked around the side of the car and pulled the door open.

“Why, I think you’re being rather ridiculous Master Dick. Of course your best friend would want to see you. It would make him feel better after a rather eventful practice. Now out you,” he said, waving him from the car.

Dick carefully unclipped his seatbelt, keeping his eyes on Alfred as he slid to the open door. He hesitated before climbing out, but Alfred waited patiently, shutting the door behind him.

Alfred placed a hand on Dick’s shoulder and guided him up onto the path that led to the front door. Dick winced when the wood of the porch creaked and groaned under their feet.

Alfred raised his hand and rapped on the door.

Several moments passed and Dick almost thought the door would go unanswered, but Barry pulled it open with a grin.

“Al, so nice to see you,” he said with a grin. “I really appreciated your call earlier and I’m glad you could stop by.”

Dick frowned and glanced up at Alfred.

“Dick, you can head on up to Wally’s room. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to see you here. He’s been in a bit of a funk since he got home. Alfred, would you like to come into the kitchen? Iris was making some cookies and I’m sure she’d love to have someone like you on hand to help out,” he said with a chuckle.

“Of course, Master Barry. I wouldn’t mind in the least.”

Barry chuckled and stepped to the side. Alfred nudged Dick over the threshold and gave him a pat on the back. Barry shut the door and they disappeared around the corner, leaving Dick at the foot of the staircase.

He glanced up the stairs, the second floor silent. He swallowed and placed a foot on the first stair, glad when it didn’t make noise. He took a deep breath, knowing it was too late to run. He just hoped Wally wouldn’t throw him out on sight.

Wally’s room was uncharacteristically quiet as he approached. Normally, Wally had some music or a show playing or was making some noise since he could rarely stay still, but it wasn’t until Dick was at Wally’s cracked doorway that he heard him muttering under his breath.

He couldn’t make out the words, but Wally didn’t sound happy.

Dick raised his fist and knocked on the doorframe, listening as the muttering stopped.

Wally huffed and the springs of his bed creaked. “Barry, I already told you that I don’t want any-”

His protest died when he pulled the door open and came face to face with Dick. He blinked and Dick smiled, feeling sheepish and small.

“Hi,” he said, giving Wally a little wave.

“Dick,” he breathed, staring at him. He shook himself. “I mean, hey, hi, hello, what’s up? What are-what are you doing here?” he asked with a small chuckle, his cheeks turning pink.

“Alfred brought me and has abandoned me in favor of making cookies with Iris. Are you busy? I’m not bothering you, am I?” Dick started to take a step back, ready to go back downstairs and tell Alfred it was hopeless.

“No!” he said, shaking his head. He cleared his throat. “No, you’re not. I was just trying to read for one of my classes, but-”

“But’s it’s the last thing you want to be doing,” Dick said with a smile.

“Kinda, yeah,” Wally said with a shrug.

“Are you feeling okay after the whole…” Dick waved at his face.

“Yeah, I feel fine. Great even. I’m ready to lace my shoes back up and get ready for our first meet. Do you want to come in?” he asked, realizing they were still standing in the hallway.

Dick nodded and slipped past, throwing himself into one of the beanbag chairs in Wally’s room. Wally fell into the other one, sighing as it wrapped him in a hug.

“Feel like playing some video games?” Wally murmured, eyes still shut.

“I mean sure, but it’ll be easier than usual to beat you if you’re going to play like that,” Dick said, sitting forward to press the power on the game console. He grabbed the controllers and tossed one to Wally who caught it easily.

“Don’t think you’re going to beat me this time,” Wally said, sitting forward to brace his elbows on his knees.

“You say that every time and what happens? I beat you.” Dick crossed his legs on the chair underneath him, sitting up taller to hold his controller in his lap.

“We’re still going to Jason’s soccer game later this week, right?” Wally asked, clicking through the menu options they’d long ago memorized.

“Of course,” Dick scoffed, watching as the screen faded to black before opening on their first battle arena. “We can’t not go to his game. Besides, Tim is going to be there and we have to catch him drooling over Jason in his uniform at least once.”

Wally chuckled. “We don’t have to go to a game for that. He drools over him practically every day.”

Dick snickered, making his character jump over Wally’s as he tried to attack him first. He used the control expertly, making his character spin and bring their sword down on Wally’s head.

“You’re right about that. But I’m hoping one of these days we can convince them that they really should date.”

“How about this?” Wally asked, tongue sticking out as he concentrated on countering each of Dick’s moves. “If they don’t get their shit together by prom, we stage an elaborate flash mob in the school to get them together as dates.”

Dick grinned, sneaking in under Wally’s defenses to take another swipe at him and lower his health bar. “I think that’s a great idea. I would counter that with we should do that in time for Homecoming, but I’d like to give them a little more credit than just October.”

Wally snorted. “They’ve gone how many years already without realizing they’re basically in love with each other?”

Dick shrugged, bringing his sword down on Wally’s head to take the last of his HP for the winning strike.

“Oh come on!” Wally whined.

Dick cackled. “I told you, you can’t beat me.”

“We’ll see about that,” Wally promised, pointing a nonthreatening finger in his direction as the screen shifted to the next round.


	9. Chapter 9

Wally shoved a handful of popcorn into his mouth as he and Dick climbed the metal stairs up to the short set of bleachers. A few people had arrived for the game already and even though the soccer team was one of the best in the state, it still didn’t pull the kinds of crowds the football team got at home and away games.

Dick sat down with a sigh in the first row and winced at the unforgiving metal of the bleachers.

“They really need to come up with a better design for mass seating,” he grumbled as Wally took the seat next to him, their thighs unintentionally pressing together.

Dick forced himself to stay still, wanting to press into Wally’s warmth.

“They do,” Wally said around a mouthful of food. “But our school wouldn’t want to pay for it.”

“Point,” Dick agreed, his eyes roving over the players warming up on the field. He missed Jason during his first pass of the purple uniforms and narrowed his eyes. “Hey, do you see Jason?”

“Hm?” Wally asked, holding out the popcorn to him.

Dick eagerly took a handful, eating with less mess than Wally did. Wally’s eyes searched the field and he pointed towards a player passing back and forth with one of his teammates. Dick zeroed in on him and grinned when he recognized Jason’s intense focus when it came to his sport. Even when they were just warming up, he put every part of himself into what he was doing.

He took the next pass and turned, planting his left foot before swinging through with his left, launching the ball towards the net. Dick was sure it was about to find its home in the upper left corner, but the keeper’s gloves plucked it out of the air like it was nothing.

Jason turned, scowl obvious on his face and set up for the next portion of their warm-up. He paused and a smile pulled at his lips, eyes on the sideline.

Dick followed his gaze and found Tim standing there, wearing a baggy purple shirt and holding his camera between his hands. He was looking at an image on his screen but glanced up, catching Jason’s gaze on him.

Jason waved at him and even Dick could see the shy smile that pulled at Tim’s lips as he waved back, shoulders hunching self-consciously and not wanting to seem too pleased or happy.

Wally made a fake gagging noise at his elbow and Dick chuckled. He knocked their shoulders together, glancing at Wally who was already watching him with a grin.

Dick rolled his eyes. “Shut up. You think they’re being cute, too.”

Wally shrugged. “Maybe, but I still don’t understand how they can’t see what’s right in front of them.”

Dick waved his hand. “They’ve been pining forever and are both terrified of rejection, so…”

“You’re both one to talk.”

“Hey!” Dick protested as he was shoved to the side, Roy making a space for himself between them as he slung his arms around both their shoulders.

“What did I miss?” Roy asked, swiping a handful of popcorn from Wally’s bag.

“An introduction in manners,” Dick grumbled.

“Respect your elders, squirt,” Roy huffed, tightening his arm around Dick’s neck.

Dick elbowed him in the side. “You’re like a year older than us, don’t act so cocky,” he muttered, careful to keep his chin tucked so Roy couldn’t completely cut off his air supply.

“That’s what big brothers are for, idiot,” Roy said, letting up on the pressure. “And next time don’t start things without me.”

“What exactly were we starting without you?” Wally asked. “If you haven’t noticed, the game hasn’t even started yet.”

“I know that. What I’m talking about is ragging on my best friend. I can’t miss out on humiliating him about how much he pines. Considering how smart Tim is, I’m surprised that he hasn’t noticed how much attention Jason gives him. And even if the game hasn’t really started yet, that doesn’t mean something else hasn’t.”

Dick frowned and glanced up at Roy, finding his gaze on the field. He followed Roy’s eyes and spotted Jason talking to Tim on the sideline. Tim was on the very edge of the chalk line, the toes of one of his worn converse brushing across the grass absentmindedly as he looked up at Jason through his eyelashes.

Jason was grinning down at him, one hand on his hip while he tried to act cool and scratch the back of his head. Dick was surprised Tim hadn’t noticed how unnaturally long he was doing the behavior. The nervous tell was obvious to anyone who wasn’t smitten.

Dick sighed. “They really have no idea.”

“Watch this,” Roy said with a grin.

“Roy what are you going to do?” Dick asked, eyeing him warily.

“Just watch,” Roy said. He strode over to the edge of the bleachers and cupped his hands around his mouth. He was still several feet from Tim and Jason, but they’d have no problem hearing him. “Yo, Todd! Shouldn’t you be warming up for the game?”

Jason stopped mid-sentence, his smile freezing on his face. Tim glanced over his shoulder and covered his mouth with his hand, stifling a giggle. Dick and Wally snickered as Jason’s smile slid from his face and he scowled up at Roy.

He muttered something to Tim and spun on his heel, jogging back over to the rest of his teammates.

Roy huffed and grinned, spinning to swagger back to bench and sit down between Dick and Wally. “I think that taught him he should be more careful about who he spends obnoxious amounts of time talking to.” He crossed his arms, sitting up straighter like he really thought he won this round.

Dick slapped Wally’s arm behind Roy’s back and nodded his head. Wally winced and they both ducked seconds before a soccer ball hit Roy in the forehead. Roy choked, eyes flying open as the impact knocked him backwards.

His arms spiraled, trying to keep himself from falling off the bench, but gravity pulled him backwards and sent him crashing into the space between the benches, his arms flung over the seats behind him and his legs sticking up in the air.

Dick glanced over his shoulder at Roy’s shocked expression as he blinked up at the sky. Dick grinned and glanced back at the field at where Jason sported a grin of his own.

“Nice shot Todd!” Wally shouted on Roy’s other side.

Jason pumped his fist in the air and turned to jog back towards the rest of his team. Dick cackled and Roy spluttered behind him, struggling to get up from his position.

His hand slipped on the seat behind him, causing him to land hard on the bleachers again and the metal rang from the impact. Dick cackled harder, holding his side as he fought to get air into his lungs.

Dick glanced at the field and watched Jason intercept another shot, taking the brunt of the impact with his chest before it fell to the ground and he started in the opposite direction. Tim’s shoulders were hunched where he was on the sideline and Dick knew he was doing everything he could to muffle his own giggles at Roy’s position.

“I’m going to kill him for that,” Roy seethed, finally managing to get himself back on the bench. His face was red and eyes narrowed on Jason where he was on the field.

“Good luck with that,” Dick forced out between gasps for air. “Careful, or he might hit you in the head again.”

Roy whirled on him and Dick held up his hands, trying to calm his laughter and avoid Roy’s retaliation.

“Calm down, Roy,” Wally pleaded, grabbing Roy’s shoulders before he could lunge at Dick. “You have to admit it was pretty funny.”

Roy heaved a sigh and Wally let go of his shoulder. It was obvious he was calming down from his embarrassment and they all knew he had no reason to be mad at Dick and Wally when they were just reacting to the situation around them.

“I’m going to get him back for that,” he muttered, voice dark.

A shrill whistle broke through their conversation and they glanced at the field, watching the players gather up the extra soccer balls and cones as they got ready to start the game.

“I think part of him was just trying to impress Tim,” Dick whispered.

“Wouldn’t surprise me, but next time he can leave me out of it.”

Dick glanced at Wally who was biting his lip, shoulders shaking as he fought to keep his laughter from getting the best of him again. Dick grinned and let his gaze slide back to the field. As soon as the clock started, he knew they were going to be drawn into the game. Especially with how intense Jason always played.

The spectators dutifully rose when the national anthem came over the speakers. Dick tried not to smile when he heard Wally chewing on the other side of Roy, nothing breaking the concentration he had on the food in front of him.

Dick clapped when the music ended and the starting line of both teams jogged onto the field, taking their respective halves. Jason rolled his shoulders, keeping his muscles loose as he took his spot in the center of the field across from North High’s forward.

“And here we go,” Roy breathed as the ref tossed the ball into the air.

Jason left the ground in seconds, trying to get possession. Dick could see the scowl that pulled at his lips when the opposing team had split-second faster footwork, putting the ball into the possession of one of their other forwards.

Jason hung back, letting his teammate on his right stay with the ball as they waited for their opening. North High made a break past Gotham High’s forward, but Gotham’s defense kept him back.

Dick saw movement out of the corner of his eye and glanced down at Tim who’d moved along the sideline, gaze glued through the viewfinder as his photography senses took over. Dick couldn’t hear the click of the shutter from where he was sitting, but he knew Tim wouldn’t leave with less than several hundred pictures, always fighting to capture the perfect shot.

The audience cheered around him and Dick looked back to the field. He grinned and stuck two fingers between his lips, letting out a shrill whistle as Gotham pushed past North High’s frontline and made a break down the field.

Jason sprinted in tandem with the other forward, weaving and dodging around the other players even as their defense struggled to shut him out. Jason waved a hand over his head and was rewarded with a volley over the heads of several of North High’s players. Jason backpedaled, fighting to get into a good position. Someone elbowed him in the side and Jason jumped, barely managing to take the header and lobbing it back towards the other forward.

“Come on Jason,” Roy huffed, leg bouncing up and down.

“It’s still early,” Dick said, trying to convince himself as much as Roy.

“Yeah, but we all know how important scoring early is for Jason and the team,” Wally muttered. “It’s what helps keep them on top and boost morale.”

Dick sucked in a breath and jumped to his feet as the ball was passed through the legs of two players, finding its home at Jason’s feet. Jason spun around and kicked before anyone else could think of intercepting him.

Roy stood next to Dick as they tracked the ball, waiting for it to find its home in the net. Gloved fingers plucked it out of the air and everyone in the stands let out a frustrated groan.

Dick sagged back onto the bench and watched as Gotham’s forwards backpedaled and North High moved forward, waiting for the ball from their keeper.

Dick sucked in a breath as it sailed over the heads of his players. Jason’s neck craned as he looked over his shoulder, tracking the ball’s path with his eyes. North High’s forwards sprinted towards where it was going to land, but it was obvious the keeper put more power than he expected to behind the kick when one of Gotham’s defenders took the header and lobbed it back towards Jason.

Two midfielders zeroed in on Jason as the ball found its home. Jason grinned and spun past one and then the other, pushing past their poor attempt at defense. Both of Gotham’s forwards tracked alongside Jason, keeping in time with him effortlessly.

Dick shoved the end of his nail between his teeth, his leg bouncing up and down as he watched the play. Faster than Dick could follow, Jason passed to one of the other forwards, taking the defenders by surprise.

North High’s keeper shouted something, no doubt seeing the move before the others caught on. They changed direction, following the right forward, but the ball was gone in the blink of an eye and back in Jason’s grasp.

Jason pushed forward, hitting the gas. The keeper crouched, arms out as his sides as he watched Jason’s feet and tried to predict where the shot would go. Jason kept his eyes on him as he pulled his leg back.

The keeper dived a second before Jason made contact. The ball sailed through the air and over the keeper’s head into the top left corner of the net.

Dick jumped to his feet with a shout. Roy and Wally cheering next to him. Jason pumped his fist and sprinted back towards his teammates as they nearly forced him to the ground with congratulatory hugs and pats on the back.

Dick glanced at the sideline and found Tim struggling between pumping his fists into the air and taking pictures of the scene in front of him. From everyone’s reactions, no one would’ve thought this was the first goal of the game.

“We’re going to be unstoppable now,” Wally shouted over the roar of the crowd around them.

“Hell yeah we are!” Dick agreed.

They grinned at each other and Wally held out his fist which Dick bumped eagerly. The cinnamon-edged energy and excitement was palpable as the audience sat on the edges of their seats.

Gotham’s posture changed on the field. The shoulders of each player were squared and they stared down their opponents with every bit of intensity they had within them. The first time Dick saw the team play and the change that came over them after their first goal, he would’ve chalked it up to being cocky, but he’d long since learned from that first game.

This was a different feeling than cockiness. They weren’t assuming the next goal was theirs, they’d already proved the first goal _was_ theirs and they had every bit of a street brawl kind of energy to pull one more goal from the other team before they’d even consider rolling over and giving up.

This was their field and North High was going to have to do everything in their power to try and take it out from under their feet. It was going to be a vicious fight. Gotham came to win and Jason was hellbent on bringing his team to victory.

Jason stared down the two forwards across from him as they set up the ball. An advantage was the last thing they were going to get. North High’s offense surged forward, trying to match Gotham’s intensity.

They covered a few yards before one of Gotham’s midfielder’s slipped through North High’s forwards, taking the ball so quickly the forwards kept going for a few more feet before they realized it was gone.

Dick snickered, his gaze lazily following the midfielder as he caught up to Gotham’s forwards and they tried to make a break through North High’s defense. They were better prepared for the assault this time and managed to gain possession of the ball, trying to push back past Jason.

Jason didn’t let them get far and took it back, spinning around a second defender. He faked to the right, swinging around to the left and was about to break between another pair of defenders when one of North High’s midfielders came up behind him and slammed into his side.

Dick’s shout of protest was drowned out by the rest of the audience as they jumped to their feet, watching Jason skid along the field, scowl pulling at his lips.

One of the refs blew her whistle, calling the foul. The shouts of dissent morphed into a cheer complimenting the ref.

Jason pushed himself to his feet, brushing blades of grass from his uniform. He accepted the ball kicked towards him and carefully placed it at his feet. He straightened and rolled his shoulders, giving a subtle nod to his teammates as they took their places for his free kick.

He was halfway between midfield and North High’s goal and his chances of making a goal from the kick were slim, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be able to set it up nice enough that his teammates could tap it in behind North High’s defensive line.

Dick glanced at the sideline and saw Tim biting his nail, his attention completely on the game and camera forgotten. He knew it wouldn’t last long and once this kick was over with, Tim would pull himself back to what he should be doing.

Jason raised his hand, lowering it once he got a nod from the ref. One of the midfielders crossed in front of him before he took three steps and made contact with the ball. North High’s defenders jumped to try and block, but the ball made it over their heads and found its home against the chest of one of Gotham’s forwards.

He spun and tried to aim for the goal, but North High’s defense slipped past him and stole the ball back.

The audience groaned, falling back into their seats for what was no doubt going to be an intense game.


	10. Chapter 10

Dick cheered as loud as his lungs would allow, arms waving over his head and jumping up and down in the stands as he watched Gotham’s soccer team fall into a celebratory heap in the middle of the field once the buzzer sounded. Their victory was set in the face of the final score of 2-0.

An arm wrapped around his neck and he laughed, glancing over at Roy who had his arms around both him and Wally. Dick could see Tim jumping up and down on the sidelines, going back and forth between cheering and taking pictures for the newspaper.

Finally, the team pulled themselves up off the field, grins visible from the stands as they shook hands with the other team.

The crowd finally started to quiet, more from their need to catch their breath than from being any less elated in the face of their school’s victory.

Dick’s heart was racing and he laughed between gasps for breath, the adrenaline and electricity from the game lighting up every nerve in his body.

“We should head to the diner,” Wally said, leaning around Roy to speak to Dick. “We have to celebrate and if we don’t get there soon, half of Gotham’s fans are going to be there.”

Dick nodded. “Let’s go let Tim and Jason know. They won’t want to miss out.”

“Hurry up or we won’t get a booth,” Roy said, shoving them towards the stairs.

Dick jumped the four steps to the grass below, landing in a crouch before he sprang back to his feet. Wally jogged down the steps behind him and Dick waved his hands over his head as he jogged over to Tim.

“Hey!” he called, getting his attention.

Tim grinned, waving his hand over his head. “Can you believe that game?” he gushed. “I was on the edge of my seat the whole time! Well not literally because I was standing the whole game, but I think you know what I mean.”

Dick nodded. “Yeah! And definitely worthy of some celebratory shakes from the diner. We were going to grab a table? Are you and Jason coming?”

Tim nodded. “We wouldn’t miss it. I’ll let him know once he gets done stretching and getting the post-game talking-to from his couch. I have to meet up with Abby and compare notes over the game and what we’re doing for the article for the paper tomorrow. We’ll head over once we’re done.”

“Glad you offered,” Wally broke in, slipping his arm around Dick’s. “Because if we don’t get a move on, there’s not going to be anywhere for us to sit.”

Tim waved them off. “Get going. We’ll meet you there. And make sure you get a booth!”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re going!” Wally said, laughing.

Wally pulled Dick across the field, going a bit faster than a jog, but not so fast that Dick wouldn’t be able to keep up. Roy rolled his eyes as they broke through the crowd near the field’s gates.

“It’s about time,” he muttered.

“Shut up,” Wally said good-naturedly, grabbing his arm to pull him along behind him.

Roy stumbled a handful of steps before he got his feet underneath him and kept up with them easily. They swung around the corner to the diner and dodged around two groups of people before pushing through the front door.

“Have a seat where you like,” a server breathed as they moved past, effortlessly carrying a serving tray stacked high with steaming plates of food and milkshakes.

Half the diner was already filled with people, both those enjoying a night out and other students who’d just come from the game. By some miracle, a booth in the back corner was still open and they snagged it before anyone else could come along.

Dick and Wally shifted sideways into one side of the booth, Wally still holding his and Roy’s arms. Before Roy could get pulled down with them, he shook off Wally’s grip and slipped into the opposite side of the booth.

Dick slapped a menu in front of Wally before he could reach for one and browsed the drinks list over his shoulder.

“What are we feeling, Walls?” Dick mumbled, eyes flicking between two different milkshakes as he tried to decide which one to get.

“Curly fries covered in nacho cheese?” he suggested.

“You two are disgusting,” Roy grumbled.

Dick snorted. “You say that now, but you’re totally going to ask to try one of our fries.”

“No, I won’t,” he muttered.

“He’s right, Dick,” Wally said with a grin, glancing up at Roy. “He won’t ask, he’ll just take one.”

Roy scowled and Dick snickered.

“I want to get some sliders, too,” Dick said, nodding to himself when he decided on a milkshake.

“Classic cheese?” Wally offered.

“Duh.”

“What can I get you three?” a server sighed, stopping next to their table with a pad of paper in hand. He raised an eyebrow when no one answered right away.

“I’ll have the chocolate chip cookie dough milkshake, he’ll have the Nutella milkshake, and we’ll take an order of curly fries with nacho cheese, and six of the classic cheese sliders, and whatever he’s having,” Dick rattled off, waving his hand at Roy.

He scribbled down everything Dick said and turned to look at Roy.

“Strawberry milkshake and a basket of regular fries,” Roy added.

He nodded and moved away, hopefully to the kitchen to get their order put in. Dick’s stomach was already rumbling.

“How long do you think it’s going to take?” Wally asked, bouncing up and down in his seat and glancing over his shoulder.

“He just left, you’re going to have to give him more time than that,” Dick said, crossing his arms on top of the table. “We’ll get our shakes first anyway.”

Wally groaned and sagged down into the booth. “I’m so hungry,” he mumbled, pouting at the table.

“You’re always hungry,” Roy huffed. “You’ll survive until your food gets here.” He smirked. “At least now we’ll have some entertainment.”

Dick frowned and perked up, looking over the back of the booth to see what Roy spotted.

Jason and Tim were headed towards them, Jason’s arm around Tim’s shoulders. For a split-second Dick thought the two of them might have finally confessed to each other and was about to smack Wally on the arm to get his attention when he noticed the twin expressions on Jason and Tim’s face. They were both obviously trying to hide how pleased they were by the contact, desperate to make it seem as friendly as possible.

Dick let out a huff and shook his head. He turned back around in the booth and sagged into the cushions.

“I thought they’d finally told each other,” he muttered.

Wally snorted next to him.

“I know, I know, but I was kind of hoping.”

He sighed and was about to cross his arms when their server appeared at their table, cutting off Jason and Tim’s path to set down the three milkshakes for them.

“What will you two be having?” he asked, turning to face Jason and Tim.

“Two double-chocolate milkshakes with extra whipped cream,” they rattled off together.

They glanced at each other and looked away, flushing.

“And a bacon cheeseburger with curly fries for me,” Jason added.

The server raised an eyebrow and wrote down the order before breezing past them to put it in. Dick smirked and slid his glass closer to him, catching the straw between his lips to take a long pull of the thick drink.

“It’s about time you two showed up,” Roy said, licking some of the melting ice cream from the rim of the glass.

Jason scowled. “Shut up,” he huffed, guiding Tim into the booth to sit between him and Roy. Jason pulled his arm from around Tim’s shoulders and sat up to his full height, staring daggers at Roy over Tim’s head.

Roy stared back, lips pulling back in a sneer. Dick glanced at Wally who rolled his eyes, looking between the two of them.

“Stop it,” Tim huffed, smacking Jason in the chest with the back of his hand.

Jason glanced down at Tim and rolled his neck, dropping his hands into his lap as he relaxed back into the booth.

“Soooo?” Wally asked, finally pulling himself away from his straw and leaning forward. “How are you feeling after the win?”

Jason grinned. “Amazing! I think starting off the season so strongly is going to give us a good lead going into our next game. We can definitely keep riding this wave.”

“I think you could ride it all the way to the championship,” Tim broke in, staring down at his hands in his lap. “Your team is strong and all of them follow you without hesitation. My prediction is that you’re not only going to crush regular season play, but you’re going to command the championship games,” he gushed. Tim bit his lip, his cheeks flushing a darker shade of pink as Jason cleared his throat and looked away, his own face flushing at the praise.

“Thanks, Tim,” Jason said, scratching his cheek. “I’m glad someone thinks we can win.”

“I’m not the only one…” he muttered, hunching his shoulders.

“Yeah, we know you’re going to be awesome,” Wally said, leaning forward over the table. “It’s only natural considering our group is made up of the best.”

“Minus Roy,” Jason said with a smirk.

“Why you…” Roy growled, turning in his seat.

“Alright, I’ve got some food and shakes here,” their server said, breaking into their conversation. He passed the shakes to Tim and Jason and gave the food to Dick and Wally. “Your burger will be out soon,” he said, pointing at Jason. “Let me know if any of you need anything else!”

He spun on his heel and stopped at the table across from them, checking in on their food.

Dick and Wally both snatched a fry from the cheese covered basket, humming at the taste. Wally stuffed two more into his mouth and Dick tucked into one of his sliders, stomach grumbling again.

Tim sighed and Jason groaned as they sipped on their shakes, happy to get something in their stomachs after the long night.

“Wait,” Roy said, making them all pause, “where are my fries?”

Dick paused and snickered.

“Guess you’ll just have to try one of ours,” Wally said, sliding the basket towards him.

Roy made a gagging noise and hid behind his shake making everyone chuckle.

Wally nudged Dick’s shoulder and he glanced over at him, breath catching at the grin he was giving him, Wally’s eyes sparkling even if chocolate and cheese dotted the edges of his mouth.

Wally’s smile dimmed a little when he didn’t immediately return his grin and Dick forced his gaze back to the table, grabbing one of his sliders and biting half of it off. He barely chewed and swallowed harshly, nearly wincing as the food went down.

He grabbed his shake to wash the rest of it down and took a shaky breath, forcing his attention on the conversation Tim and Jason had started, knowing he needed to keep himself under control.

~~

“Look at this!”

Dick chuckled, nearly feeling like his hair should’ve blown back as Wally skidded to a stop next to him, waving the school newspaper around like it was on fire.

He pointed excitedly to the front page where one of Tim’s pictures took up the entire cover. It was a shot of the soccer team celebrating after their second goal the night before, the large headline “Boys’ Soccer Team Dominates Again” in bold black lettering overlaying the frame.

“It looks amazing as always,” Dick said with a nod.

“There are even better shots inside. Tim’s really outdone himself this time,” Wally said, flipping to the centerfold.

Dick pressed against his side, looking over his shoulder at Tim’s pictures of the team and Jason. “He always outdoes himself when it comes to Jason.”

He glanced up to make sure they weren’t about to run into anyone and grinned. “Well would you look at that…”

Wally glanced up and spotted Tim grabbing some books from his locker. “Should we go compliment him?” he asked, glancing down at Dick whose eyes were sparkling.

“We should,” he agreed, making a beeline through the crowd.

Wally kept up with him easily, practically pressing into his back. He threw an arm around Dick’s shoulders as they closed the last bit of distance.

“Hey Tim,” Dick drawled, smirk pulling at his lips.

Tim paused and glanced up at them, book halfway into his bag. “What’s up?” he asked.

Wally snatched the newspaper from Dick’s fingers and held it up in front of them. Tim looked down at it and then glanced away, stuffing his last three books into his bag.

“What about it?”

“Your pictures look good,” Wally said. “Like always.”

Tim shrugged. “They’re nothing special.”

“I don’t know, I think they’re pretty good,” Dick said. “Especially some of these in the middle that are…centered around Jason.”

Tim flushed. “Why wouldn’t they be?” he scoffed. “Jason’s the team captain and leading striker. Of course he’s going to be in the center of the action.”

“Or…he’s in the center of so many of your pictures because you kind of love his face and want to stare at it all day,” Dick continued.

“Shut up,” he muttered. “It’s not like anything’s going to come out of it.”

Dick blinked, trying to process that Tim had actually just admitted his crush to them in a roundabout way. He glanced at Wally who looked just as surprised as him.

Dick sighed and shook his head. “Tim…for someone as smart as you, you’re kind of an idiot.”

“For what? Liking someone like Jason?” he snapped.

“Not at all,” Wally said, voice soft. “For thinking that you’d never be able to have a relationship with Jason when it’s so obvious he’s just as into you.”

“Yeah right. See you guys later,” he huffed, spinning around to disappear into the crowd.

“Well that didn’t go great,” Dick muttered.

“Did you ever think it would?” Wally asked with a soft laugh. “Baby steps. And Tim kind of just admitted his undying love for Jason to us, so he’s probably feeling majorly vulnerable.”

Dick sagged against his side, feeling something twist inside his chest at how much he understood Tim’s struggle. “Yeah, you’re right. We can make it up to him later. As long as he doesn’t avoid us at lunch anyway.”

Wally shrugged. “Even if he does, he’s probably going to be hanging out with Jason, so at least we’re not hurting their relationship.”

“I don’t think we could do anything to hurt their relationship,” Dick said, shooting a grin at Wally.

“You’re probably right about that.”

They stood in silence for a moment and Dick knew they needed to get to class, but he felt so good at Wally’s side underneath his arm that he didn’t want to move. He’d be happy staying right there for the rest of his life and forgetting about everything else.

“Oh, hey!” Wally said, turning to face him. “You’re coming after school, right?”

Dick frowned, trying to think of what Wally was talking about. Wally’s grin faded a little when he didn’t answer right away.

“Coming where?” Dick finally asked.

Wally pulled his arm from around Dick’s shoulders and scratched the back of his head. “To my first cross-country meet this afternoon.”

Dick felt something crumble in his chest and closed his eyes. “Shit, Wally I…I’m really sorry, but I was supposed to be fitted for my cheer uniform this afternoon.”

Wally shrugged and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Hey, it’s okay. No worries. You’ll just have to come to the next one, right?”

Dick grabbed Wally’s arm when it looked like he was about to move away. “No, seriously Walls, I’m so, _so_ sorry I can’t be there. I love going to your meets and cheering on the best Kid Flash.”

Wally’s smile brightened a little. “I’m the only Kid Flash, dude.”

Some of the guilt pressing down on Dick’s chest started to lighten, but he didn’t feel much better about not being able to go support Wally.

“That’s why you’re the best,” Dick quipped. “But seriously, I’m really sorry I can’t be there tonight.”

“It’s okay, dude. I can’t expect you to be at every single meet. And you’re just starting to get really involved with the cheer team, so you’ve got obligations, too. And we wouldn’t want you to have to cheer naked or anything,” he said with a snicker.

Dick punched Wally in the arm. “Shut up,” he grumbled. “When’s the next one anyway?”

“The next…? Oh! Next Thursday right after school. I could probably convince coach to let you ride the bus. And the other guys won’t mind,” Wally said, his earlier excitement returning.

“I’ll be there,” Dick said. “And riding the team bus sounds like a party.”

“There’s no party like a cross-country party,” Wally agreed, shooting finger guns at Dick.

Dick snickered and opened his mouth to say something else when the bell rang over their heads. His eyes widened and he glanced at the empty hallway around him, Wally looking just as shocked.

“See you later,” Dick said, spinning around to sprint to his class as Wally headed in the opposite direction.

“Bye Dick!” Wally shouted, rounding the corner at the opposite end of the hallway.

Dick grinned and shoved through the door to the stairwell, taking them two at a time to get to his class on the second floor. He was going to be out of breath and his teacher would probably be a little peeved that he was late, but he couldn’t really bring himself to care.

Wally was making him do all kinds of stupid things, not that he hadn’t since the day they’d become friends, but now it was so much different. And Dick craved every moment they spent together.


	11. Chapter 11

Dick sighed as he pushed through the door to Coach Jones’s office. He still felt bad about not being able to go to Wally’s track meet, but was glad he’d caught him on his way out to the team bus and had been able to wish him luck.

The other guys on the team cheered and waved back and he really wished he’d gotten the chance to go cheer them on. It was their first meet and they always worked so hard getting ready for the season.

“That was a pretty hefty sigh Dick.”

He glanced up and found Coach Jones watching him from behind her desk.

“Everything alright?” she asked.

He nodded and dropped his backpack by the door. “Yeah…my friend Wally has his first cross country meet of the year today and I just wish I could’ve been there.”

“Getting fitted shouldn’t take too long,” she said with a smile. “If we get done early enough, you might be able to make if for the rest of the meet…”

He grinned. “Really?!”

She chuckled. “Of course. It’s actually going to be a bit quicker for you than it usually is for the rest of the girls. We’ve never had a boy on the team before so we don’t have any uniforms for you to try on. I’m just going to take your measurements and I’ll put in an order for a new uniform. It should be here by next week in time for the next football game.”

“Okay, let’s do it!”

“Coach Jones?” Zatanna asked, poking her head through the door.

“Zatanna? What is it?” she asked.

Zatanna walked inside, holding a small box. “Here are the rest of the uniforms that you asked me to get out of storage.”

“Ah, thank you! I really need to inventory them and see which ones we need to keep and which need replacing.”

Zatanna set the box on her desk and pulled the flaps open. Dick spotted the colorful purple and black uniforms and stepped forward to inspect the pleated skirts.

“Is Dick going to get to wear one of the skirts?” she asked, glancing over at him.

“What?” he blurted. “Me?”

She shrugged. “Why not? We’ve never had a boy on the team.” She pulled one of the skirts from the box. “Besides, I think it’d look good on you.”

Dick stared down at the skirt as Zatanna held it up against his waist and inspected the fit.

“What do you think, Coach?” Zatanna asked.

“I think that’s really up to Dick. I’m not going to force him to wear anything he doesn’t,” she said.

Dick carefully took the skirt from her hands, rubbing his thumbs over the worn material. He could almost picture the way the other flyers had looked when they were tossed into the air. The skirts made perfect halos to accent their flips and turns.

He thought about what that would be like in pants and cringed. Not only would the material be stuffy and restrictive, but it would clash with what everyone else would wear.

He held the skirt up to his waist, imagining how it would brush against his thighs. It would be different compared to what he usually wore, but after years spent living in leotards, he didn’t really care about having his legs exposed.

“Can I try it on?” he asked, looking up at Coach Jones and Zatanna.

“You don’t have to, Dick,” Coach Jones said. “Don’t feel pressured into wearing it because of us.”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry, I’m not. And I haven’t made my decision yet, but I think I would feel more comfortable in something less restrictive than pants.”

She nodded. “If you want to step into the closet to change you’re more than welcome. Or you can go to the bathroom.”

“The closet’s fine,” he said, stepping around Zatanna. He pulled open the door and flicked on the switch, stepping inside.

He shut the door behind him and kicked off his shoes. He tucked the skirt under his arm and popped the zipper on his jeans, shoving them down around his ankles so he could step out of them.

Dick was really happy he’d decided to wear briefs to school since putting the fitted spandex shorts on over boxers would’ve been a nightmare. He stepped into the legs of the shorts set into the skirt and pulled it up over his thighs. The elastic waistband settled around his waist so it was snug, but not too tight.

He looked down and smoothed his hands over the skirt, feeling the pleats twitch and shift against the skin of his thighs. He smiled and twirled from side to side, watching the material flow and settle.

Dick shoved the door open. “You don’t happen to have a mirror, do you?” he asked, stepping out of the closet.

Zatanna beamed when she looked up at him. “Dick, you look amazing!”

He flushed. “Thanks.”

“There’s one on the back of my office door,” Coach Jones said.

Zatanna stepped to the side, giving Dick plenty of space as he walked over to the door and scrutinized his reflection. Wearing the skirt with his normal tee looked a bit weird and out of place, the blue clashing with the dark purple of the skirt.

He lifted the hem of his shirt and turned in a circle, inspecting his appearance from every side. He really liked how the hem framed his thighs.

“Can I do a couple of back handsprings in this?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Coach Jones nodded. “Let’s go out into the hallway.”

Dick pulled open the doorway, letting his shirt settle back into place. He pulled off his socks and tossed them to the floor while Zatanna and Coach Jones filed out after him.

He let out a breath and rolled his shoulders, glad for the long hallway outside of the Coach’s offices.

Dick sprinted forward, raising his arms over his head. He seamlessly transitioned into a roundoff before arching backwards to plant his hands on the floor for his back handspring. When his feet hit the ground he did a second back handspring before ending with a back tuck.

The skirt settled around his thighs and he smiled.

A wolf-whistle caught his attention and he looked up, finding Zatanna with her fingers between her lips. He flushed and scratched the back of his head.

“Come on, twinkle toes! What else you got?!” she called, grinning.

Dick shrugged, feigning like he was going to turn away before he dropped his weight and pushed off the ground, arching backwards into another round of back handsprings that ending in a full twist.

He sighed, rolling his shoulders. He turned to face Coach Jones and Zatanna and grinned.

“I think I’ll keep the skirt,” he said, putting his hands on his hips.

“You can keep the skirt,” Coach Jones said, mirroring his smile. “But I think we need to get you a shirt to match.”

“Yes, this is so exciting!” Zatanna crowed, grabbing his arm to drag him back to the office.

Dick barely managed to swipe his discarded socks from the floor before he was positioned in front of the desk and Zatanna started pulling different sized tops from the box to compare to his build.

“Here, try this one,” she said, waving it in his face.

Dick rolled his eyes and pulled his tee over his head, throwing it to the floor. He slipped his arms through the top and pulled it down over his head smoothing the fabric down over his chest and stomach.

The elastic hem of the top settled seamlessly above the waistband of the skirt. He walked over to the door and shut it, letting himself look in the mirror. The top was fitted, but not constricting, the lack of sleeves showing off his defined arms. ‘Titans’ in bold white lettering was centered on the purple half off the top while the bottom was midnight black.

“I can’t wait until everyone sees you in that,” Zatanna said, excitement filling her voice as a bright sparkle lit up her eyes.

Dick grinned. “They’re probably all going to freak.”

“Only because they’ll be jealous of how good you look,” she scoffed.

“That’s enough, that’s enough,” Coach Jones huffed. “Dick, why don’t you go get changed and I can mark down which uniform you’ll be taking.”

He nodded and swiped his shirt from the floor before ducking into the closet. He carefully pulled the top off and folded it neatly before setting it on the floor. He pulled his shirt over his head and shoved the skirt down around his ankles, stepping out of the inlaid spandex shorts.

He folded the skirt and left it on top of the top of his uniform and pulled on his jeans, grabbing his uniform and his shoes before going back into the office.

Coach Jones held out her hand for the uniform and he passed it to her before he sat down and pulled his socks and shoes back on, quickly doing up the laces.

He pushed himself back to his feet and grabbed his backpack, pulling open the zipper and making sure he had enough room to fit the uniform into.

“That should be it for now. We’ll need to get you a pair of pants to wear during travel and the colder months. I should have some extras in one of the other storage boxes, but it might take me a while to find them. I can get those to you during our next practice,” Coach Jones said, handing the uniform back to him.

“Awesome,” Dick said, slipping it into his backpack before he slung it over his shoulder. “Thanks Coach.”

“Of course, Dick. Now both of you get on out of here. Go enjoy yourselves,” she said, shooing them out the door.

“Bye Coach!” Zatanna said with a chuckle as she grabbed Dick’s arm and pulled him towards the school doors.

Dick pulled out his phone as they raced for the doors and dialed Alfred’s number.

“Master Richard, is there something I can do for you? I thought I wouldn’t need to pick you up from school until later.”

“Change of plans, Al,” Dick said as he pushed through the doors to the school. “I need you to come pick me up from school and drive me to Lawrence Park.”

“I’ll be there in a few minutes,” he said, ending the call.

“What’s at Lawrence Park?” Zatanna asked, slowing to a stop at the edge of the sidewalk.

“Wally has a cross-country meet today. I didn’t get to see the start of it, but I hope I can make it before he finishes.”

She grinned. “Are you going to pull out your pompoms and cheer for him?”

Dick rolled his eyes. “Of course not. But I can certainly do a few flips as he crosses the finish line.”

“Well I, for one, can’t let you cheer alone,” Zatanna said.

“Perfect,” Dick grinned.

He waved his hand over his head when he spotted the family car weaving through traffic. Alfred slowed to a stop and rolled down the window.

“Hop in young Master and young Lady. We have the fastest runner in the city to beat and time is of the essence.”

Dick hopped down from the sidewalk and pulled the rear door open, scrambling in. Zatanna crawled in after him and shut the door. They barely had their seatbelts on before Alfred was pulling away from the curb and merging across three lanes of traffic to make the next turn they needed.

“Your butler is awesome,” Zatanna whispered.

“Thank you, Lady…?” Alfred said.

“Zatanna. I’m Zatanna.”

“Lady Zatanna,” Alfred corrected. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“You as well,” she said with a little giggle, watching the other cars they passed.

“Brace yourself,” Dick murmured, grabbing the door handle as they swerved around the next right turn.

Someone honked as Alfred merged, but none of them paid it any mind. Dick watched the street signs they passed, leg bouncing up and down as he waited for the right one.

Alfred veered around the next corner, slowing to a stop next to one of the last spaces open on the street. In a manner in complete contrast with his driving to get to the park, he parallel parked with grace and ease which emulated a Sunday drive.

“Here we are, Master Richard,” Alfred said, putting the car into park. “I’ll be waiting here when you are finished. Let Master Wallace know that if he would like a ride home, I’d be more than happy to get him one. And we might even be able to stop for ice cream on the way back if Master Wallace does rather well in his race.”

Dick grinned and shoved the door open. “Thanks, Alfred! We’ll be back soon.”

Alfred chuckled. “With how fast Master Wallace runs, I’m sure you will be.”

He jumped out of the car, Zatanna scrambling after him. Dick spotted the crowds of people at the starting and finish lines. Dick grabbed Zatanna’s hand and took off along the park’s path, grin pulling his mouth wide at the prospect of seeing Wally in his element.

“Dick,” Zatanna huffed, fighting to keep up with him in his excitement.

Dick skirted around the groups of girls warming up for their race. He briefly glanced at Gotham High’s team, knowing he could talk to them later. He had somewhere more important to be.

“Sorry, excuse me. Sorry. Sorry,” Dick said, pushing through the crowd of people to get to the front.

He dropped Zatanna’s hand and pushed onto his toes behind the flimsy ribbon line that marked the edge of the course. He squinted against the sun, fighting to catch any sign of movement on the horizon.

“Come on, come on,” Dick muttered. “Where are you Kid Flash?”

“Is that him?” Zatanna asked, pointing to the tree line.

Dick squinted, catching sight of two figures as they exited the tree line. He could see one of the uniforms was darker than the other, the first one a shade of light green. He relaxed when he made out the red hair of the runner in the darker uniform, the purple becoming more apparent as they got closer.

A cheer started among the crowd as they practically sprinted across the field. Dick bounced up and down on his toes, grin getting wider as the gap became more pronounced between Wally and the runner behind him.

“Let’s go Kid Flash!” Dick shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. “Come on, Kid Flash!!”

Wally raised a hand over his head as he came closer, grin matching Dick’s own. His red hair was plastered to his forehead around the yellow and red sweatband he wore around his head.

“Come on, Kid Flash!”

The crowd’s cheers got louder as they entered the final stretch.

Wally turned and watched Dick as he passed, cheeks red from exertion, but excitement and happiness apparent. Dick’s heart skipped a beat before kickstarting a double beat.

Dick’s cheers died, his breath leaving him in a rush as he tried to get his emotions under control. He placed a hand over his heart, willing it to slow down.

Wally raised his arms as he broke the ribbon of the finish line, carefully slowing down as he came to a stop, chest heaving from exertion.

Several seconds passed before the runner behind him crossed the finish line. Wally turned as he approached, holding out his hand. Both runners grinned, genially shaking hands after their race.

“Come on,” Zatanna said, grabbing his arm and pulling him through the crowd to go meet up with Wally.

“Wait,” Dick croaked, voice weak. He wasn’t ready. He didn’t have himself under control. Wally would know about his feelings if he saw him like this.

“Not a chance,” Zatanna said, pushing him through the crowd of people.

Dick stumbled through the line of people surrounding the finish line. Wally glanced up, hands falling away from his neck after putting his medal in place.

“Dick!” Wally cried, rushing over to him. “You’re here!”

He wrapped Dick in a tight hug and spun him around. Dick chuckled, arms wrapping around Wally’s shoulders and squeezing tightly.

“I’m here,” he murmured as Wally set him back on his feet, hands gripping his shoulders to look him up and down.

“I thought you weren’t going to make it today.”

Dick shrugged one shoulder, his cheeks reddening. “We got done early. I called Alfred and had him drive me over here. I couldn’t miss your meet. Especially not when you finished like that. First place.” Dick glanced down at the medal. “I knew you could do it,” he whispered.

Despite the rising cheers of the crowd again, silence filled the space between them.

“West! You can talk to your boyfriend later!”

Dick and Wally jumped, looking over at where Wally’s couch was standing with Gotham’s second and third runners who crossed the finish line.

“I should go,” Wally said.

Dick nodded. “Alfred said we could give you a ride home if you want to come back with us,” he blurted as Wally turned away.

Wally grinned. “Sounds great!”

Dick’s smile felt shaky as he tried to return Wally’s grin. Wally jogged over to his coach and high-fived his teammates waiting for him.

“Your pining makes me want to vomit,” Zatanna sighed, stepping up next to him. “You two are so far gone on each other. You really need to tell him how you feel.”

Dick sighed. “There’s no way I can do that.”

“Sure you can. You just need a little push.”

Dick shoved his hands into his pockets, almost wishing that the cross-country coach’s jabs were actually true and they really were dating. He’d wait at the finish line for him every single time no matter what.

Wally glanced over his shoulder as he made it back to the circle of runners around his couch. He offered one last smile at Dick. Dick raised his hand, offering a small wave and content to wait until the meet was over. He could wait. He would always wait for Wally.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are loved and appreciated!
> 
> You can find me on [Tumblr](my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com) and [Twitter](twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m)


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